EGYPT AND ITS BETRAYAL 



By Hon. Elbert E. Fakman, LL.D. 



Along the Nile 

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Egypt and its Betrayal 

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I 



EGYPT 
AND ITS BETRAYAL 

AN ACCOUNT OF THE COUNTRY DURING 
THE PERIODS OF ISMAf L AND TEWFIK 
PASHAS, AND OF HOW ENGLAND 
ACQUIRED A NEW EMPIRE 



BY 



ELBERT E. FARMAN, LL.D. 

Formerly United States Consul General at Cairo 
Author of "Along the Nile," etc. 



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PUBLISHERS NEW YORK 



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PREFACE 

Egypt has been, through all historic periods, a fruitful sub- 
ject for writers. Interest in this small country, from the time 
of the "father of history" to the present day, seems never to 
have waned. J Recently, a large amount of very incorrect in- 
formation has been given to the pubUc concerning its people 
and Government. This has been to a large extent for political 
reasons; in the interest of and by the inspiration of a Govern- 
ment whose ideal policy is the extension of its sway over all 
countries from which substantial revenues can be derived. 

With a powerful press and a great number of able writers 
at its command, constantly waging a campaign as studied and 
often as unjust as any of our Presidential contests, with no 
counter campaign working against it, only success could be 
expected. Articles thus inspired and published form the basis 
for others often written by conscientious but misled authors. 

Having held a diplomatic position in Egypt during its modern 
crucial period, I was in a position to learn the real facts. It 
is thought necessary by those in power to excuse or in some 
manner justify the imposition upon this people of the grossly 
unjust burdens they are compelled by military force to sustain. 
The old story of carrying the Bible under the left arm and the 
eword in the right hand to Christianize heathen people would 
not fit the case. The impression of service rendered in some 
other manner must be given. 

An illustration of this manner of justification appeared in 
a late number of a magazine issued by an honorable publish- 



vi Preface 

ing house of New York. The article is entitled, "The Story of 
Lord Cromer in Egypt." Lord Cromer was educated for the 
military service and reached the rank of major before going 
to Egypt. He is a man of rare administrative ability, and his 
work in Egypt from an English standpoint, that is, with a view 
to "English interests," cannot be too highly praised, and from 
this standpoint there is no need of misrepresentation, and cer- 
tainly not of gross misrepresentation. 

The article is not only extravagantly laudatory, but, to add 
to its interest and increase the effect of its praises, is profusely 
illustrated. Among these illustrations is one representing a 
palanquin borne by two gaudily decorated camels. These are 
standing, and two women are looking from the windows of the 
palanquin waiting for the work of the photographer, a scene 
not at all Egyptian. Respectable Egyptian women would not 
thus publicly exhibit themselves. In the background appear 
the tombs of the Khalifs. Under this illustration is printed, 
"Egyptian Transportation as Lord Cromer found it." 

On the same page is an illustration of a railroad, having be- 
neath it the inscription: "Transportation in Egypt as Lord 
Cromer left it." 

The meaning intended to be conveyed by these illustrations 
and the accompanying inscriptions, and the. only one that 
could be conveyed to those not acquainted with the facts, is 
that the palanquin was, on the advent of Lord Cromer in Egypt 
as its real ruler, an ordinary means of transportation, and that 
the introduction of the railroads, that have taken the place of 
this primitive mode of conveyance, is one of his Lordship's 
"great works." This wonderful transformation, if true, of the 
Christian, altruistic, English rule would naturally redoimd to 
the glory of the governing power. 

What are the facts? 

I resided in Egypt for eight years preceding the arrival of 



Preface 



Vll 



Lord Cromer as its real Governor; five years in its principal 
city, Cairo, and three years in its emporium, Alexandria. I 
visited all of its cities and places of commerce, most of them 
many times, traveled on all of its railroads and made a special 
study of the country and its people. Yet I never saw a palan- 
quin, nor anything resembUng one except the Mahmal. This 
is a litter carried on a camel in the caravan that leaves Cairo 
annually on the pilgrimage to Mecca, and described in this 
work on page forty-nine. No one, however, is ever carried in it. 
During my residence in Cairo, I was informed that the palanquin 
had formerly been used sometimes in the often fantastic cere- 
mony of conveying the bride to the home of the bridegroom. 
I have seen many of these processions, but in none of them was 
there a palanquin. The bride on all of these occasions was 
carried in a closely covered carriage, or walked under a canopy 
carried by four men by means of poles under each corner, the 
canopy having curtains coming to the ground. 

There is still the question of the railroads, that Lord Cromer 
is represented as having substituted for this alleged primitive 
mode of conveyance that had had no existence for many years 
before his arrival. There were in Egypt, on the accession of 
Ismail Pasha to its Government, over two hundred miles of rail- 
way. During the next twelve years Ismail added about nine 
hundred miles. There was thus in Egypt over a thousand miles 
of railroads, ten years previous to the advent of Lord Cromer's 
administration. If anyone had substituted the railway for the 
supposed primitive mode of conveyance, it was the much 
slandered Ismail Pasha. Years before the end of his reign 
Egypt was covered with a network of railroads connecting all 
its cities and places of commerce. Egypt then had all the rail- 
roads that it has to-day that are of any substantial value to 
its people. Besides the railroads in Lower Egypt, there was 
one extending up the Nile to Assiut, two hundred and forty 



Vlll 



Preface 



miles above Cairo. Above Assitit the valley is very narrow, 
only from one to ten miles wide, on either side of which are high 
desert hills and mountains. For this narrow strip of land the 
great river is by far the least expensive highway for its com- 
merce. 

The extension of the railroad above this point was for military 
purposes, to enable the English to reconquer the Sudan that 
had been lost to Egypt through the interference of France and 
England in its affairs. The reconquest was made at the ex- 
pense of Egypt, but the territory became an English province 
or, as they delight to call it, ''The New British Empire of the 
Sudan." All the railroads built since the reign of Ismail Pasha 
have been constructed with Egypt's money for the advance- 
ment of ''English interests." 

The illustration of the palanquin was the work of an enter- 
prising photographer. He had an old palanquin mounted and 
the camels gaudily decorated to make a salable photograph. 
This was innocent enough, but on its being purchased with 
others for the illustrations, the writer of the article or the 
illustrator added the inscriptions by which the reader is de- 
ceived. 

Others of the illustrations taken, with their inscriptions, are 
equally deceptive. A picture of the Barrage near Cairo has 
printed under it, "One of the great irrigation works of Lord 
Cromer's administration." The Barrage was commenced in 
the reign of Mohammed Ali, in 1835, and has been one of the 
"sights" visited by travelers for the last fifty years. It is true 
that, owing to the treacherous nature of the soil, its foundations 
became in time insecure; and during the financial pressure in 
Egypt from 1867 they were neglected and the Barrage became 
of little or no value as an aid to irrigation. The original structure 
is a grand and imposing work, until recently the largest weir 
in the world. This structure has been strengthened by an Eng- 




Barrage near Cairo. 
From a Photograph Taken about 1875 during the Eeign of 

Ismail Pasha. 



I 



Preface 



IX 



lish engineer, Colonel Sir Colin Scott-Moncrieff. He successfully 
accomplished a difficult task, but the Barrage can in no sense 
be called one of the works of Lord Cromer. 

There is an illustration of an encampment of wandering Arabs, 
such as frequently pitch their tents on the deserts border- 
ing on Egypt. Under it is printed, "Dirt, poverty and mis- 
ery "... "Lord Cromer's Problem." It is well known that 
the people of Egypt have not lived in tents for centuries, though 
the rude dweUings of the laboring classes are not much better 
and they have not been improved during Lord Cromer's ad- 
ministration. 

Under a view of Cairo taken from the Citadel we read: "The 
Egypt of Lord Cromer's administration." "The modern sani- 
tary, orderly city of Cairo — Lord Cromer's solution." To my 
personal knowledge Cairo was a sanitary and orderly city under 
Ismail Pasha. One could then wander anywhere about the 
city, night or day, in perfect safety, which could not then and 
cannot now be done in any city of its size in Europe or the 
United States. 

There is also an illustration of fellahin raising water by means 
of shadufs, entitled "Primitive irrigation as Lord Cromer found 
it." On the next page is the picture of the Assuan dam, with 
the inscription, "Irrigation in Egypt under Lord Cromer." It 
is thus intended to say that the dam has taken the place of the 
shaduf. 

If the writer of the article will make the voyage of the Nile 
in the month of March of the present year, he will find in use 
as many shadufs as at any time in the past. He does not tell 
us that the great dam that is causing the destruction of all the 
grand and marvelous monuments of antiquity above the First 
Cataract, and has added $800,000 a year for thirty years to the 
burdens of the poor Egyptians, has proved a great disappoint- 
ment to its sanguine promoters; and that now it is proposed to 



X Preface 

increase its height twenty-three feet, at what further cost to 
Egypt we are not informed. 

The only illustrations of the article that are intended to 
represent improvement in Egypt under its present government, 
that are not misleading, are those of the marching and drilling 
of the Egyptian soldiers who have been or are being disciplined 
by their English officers, as are the soldiers in India, to keep 
their own people in servile subjection. 

The article will not bear any closer examination of its state- 
ments relative to changed conditions of Egypt than the illus- 
trations. The writer even has the temerity, in his attempted 
justification of a continuance under mifitary force of the "spoil- 
ing of the Egyptians" commenced many years ago by the 
Jewish bankers of Paris and London, to compare the English 
occupation with that of Cuba by the United States. It will be 
news to many Americans that Lord Cromer, however meritorious 
his rule, left no native mourners in Egypt outside the official 
group and a small favored class. The English, however, well 
understand the facts. They accuse the natives of being un- 
grateful for all they have done for them, and even of hating 
their benefactors! 

I am fully aware that the preparation and publication of 
any statements of the wrongs suffered by a people already 
" bound hand and foot," and under a close military surveillance 
from which they can never escape, is a thankless task. How- 
ever, writings that are constantly appearing of the character 
of those I have mentioned have induced me to include in this 
work a number of chapters that would not otherwise have ap- 
peared. I have been urged to adopt this course not only by 
Americans, but by loyal Englishmen. 

A large part of the work relates to personal experiences from 
which it is hoped the reader, who has not had better means of 
procuring information, may obtain a general knowledge of the 



Preface 



XI 



country, its inhabitants, their occupations, modes of life, religion 
and character. This is followed by chapters descriptive of the 
manner and means by which the people have been and are 
being ''spoiled" for the benefit of Europeans, a narration of 
the facts relative to the riots of Alexandria, the bombardment 
and burning of tha tcity, and the subjugation and military oc- 
cupation of the country. 

E. E. Farman. 
New York, February, 1908. 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER I 



PAOB 



Arrival in Egypt — First impressions — Island of Pharos — First 
view of the Pyramids — Cairo — Dogs of the Orient — Street 
scenes — Garden of Ezbekiyeh 1-7 

CHAPTER II 

Visit to the Khedive — Palace of Gezlreh — Physical characteristics 
of the Khedive — His remarkable intelligence — Firman from the 
Sultan — Letter of credence — Official reception — Bakshish. . 8-18 

CHAPTER III 

The surprises of Egypt — A great oasis — The Nile — Its sources — 
Cause of its annual rise — The seasons — Irrigation — Dikes — 
Canals — Deposits — Cleaning canals — Corvee — Manner of raising 
water — Labor required — Price of labor 19-32 

CHAPTER IV 

Superstitions — Festivities of the rise of the Nile — ^Tear of Isis — 
Canal el-Khallg — Cutting of its dam — Old Cairo — Island of 
Roda — ^The Nilometer — Mysteries of its measurements. . . 33-43 

CHAPTER V 

The Mecca pilgrimage — ^The month of feasts — The sacred carpet — 
Departure of pilgrims — Route of the pilgrims — Arrival at Mecca 
— Mount Arafat — Sacrifice of the lamb — Universal Mohamme- 
dan festivities — The tomb of Mohammed — Return of pilgrims — 
Rejoicing and festivities 44-55 



xiv Contents 



CHAPTER VI 



PAGE 



The Dosseh — Arranging of the devotees — Riding over their bodies 
by the sheik — ^The wounded — Moslem belief — Discontinuance of 
Dosseh — Origin of Dosseh — The dervishes 56-64 

CHAPTER VII 

Journey to Mount Sinai — Suez — Springs of Moses — On the Red 
Sea — Tor — The caravan — Desert of Kda — Camp in the moun- 
tains — Ascent on camels — "Mosquito houses" — Mt. Serbal — 
Camping on the desert — Food of camels — Arabs of Sinai penin- 
sula — Desolate mountain passes 65-78 

CHAPTER VIII 

Mount Sinai — First view of the sacred mountain — Mount of the 
Willow — Mount of Moses — Encampment of the Israelites — Con- 
vent of St. Catherine — Encampment in its garden — Thunder- 
storm — Hermits — The Burning Bush — Fortress of Justinian — 
Convent buildings — The church and library — Ghastly charnel- 
house 79-86 

CHAPTER IX 

Ascent of Mount Sinai — "Fountain of Moses" — Chapel of the Vir- 
gin — Chapels of Elijah and Elisha — Mount of Moses — The "cleft 
of the rock"— The "Mount of the Law"— Plain El-Raha— 
The " highest point" — A hazardous adventure. . . . 87-95 

CHAPTER X 

Return to the sea — "Miraculous Spring" — Oasis of Fer^n — Arabs 
weaving — Mount Serbal — Scene of the battle of the Amalekites — 
Oases — Turquoise mines — Wonderful rock formations — Arrival 
at the sea — The cameleers disappear — Disagreeable experiences 
on the sea — Character of Arabs — How v/ere the Israelites sus- 
tained? 96-109 

CHAPTER XI 

Lake Menzaleh — Mans<irah — Damietta — Sailing on Lake Menza- 
leh — Fish and fishermen — Paradise of water-fowl — Modes of 
their capture — Effect of winds on shallow waters — Old bed of the 
Tanitic branch of the Nile. . 110-120 



Contents xv 

CHAPTER XII 



PAGB 



On donkeys to San — Papyrus — Ruins of Zoan — Wonders wrought 
in the ancient city — Works of the Israelites — Land of Goshen — 
Return to Damietta. 121-129 



CHAPTER XIII 

Route of the Exodus — Ramses — Succoth — Etham — Pelusium — 
Lake Sirbonis — ^The gulfs or pits — Loss of armies — Sea of Weeds 
— Shallow coast lakes — The "east wind" — "The waters were a 
wall" — The chariots "drave heavily" — ^Wilderness of Shur — 
Pi-tum or Pithom 130-141 



CHAPTER XIV 

Cleopatra's Needle — Origin of the idea of securing the obelisk — 
Correspondence with Department of State — Mr. Dixon's letter — 
Advice of General Grant — Matter brought to notice of Khedive — 
Khedive decides to present an obelisk — Opposition of Europeans. 142-153 



CHAPTER XV 

Gift of the obelisk — Dismissal of Americans in military service — 

Interview with Mr. Evarts — New Ministry — Desire of Khedive * 

to make the gift — Acquiescence of Nubar Pasha — Obelisk of Alex- 
andria selected — Opposition of Marriette Bey — Antiquities taken 
by him to Paris — Difficulties of the European Ministers — Resig- 
nation of Nubar Pasha — New Ministry formed — Coup d'etat of 
Khedive — New Ministry with Cherif Pasha at its head — Com- 
pletion of the gift — Official correspondence — Obelisk given City 
of New York — Claims of Europeans that the obelisks of Paris 
and London were given on account of favors and presents — Duty 
of conservation of the obelisk 154-167 



CHAPTER XVI 

Removal of obelisk — Its size and weight— Time required for re- 
moval — Date of erection at Alexandria — Inscriptions on bronze 
crab — Masonic emblems. 168-177 



xvi Contents 

CHAPTER XVII 



PAQB 



Time of original erection of obelisk — Thiltmosis III — Art of his 
period — Obelisks erected by him — Heliopolis, city of obelisks — 
Destruction of Heliopolis by Persians — Usertesen I — Periods 
through which New York obelisk has passed — Its hieroglyphic 
inscriptions 178-192 

CHAPTER XVIII 

What Egypt has done for England — Abyssinian War — General 
Loring — Object of Campaign — Result of defeat — Cost of cam- 
paign — Financial embarrassment — England's opportunity — Se- 
cret sale of Suez Canal shares — Cost of canal — Award of Napo- 
leon III — Cost of canal to Egypt — Labor furnished — Corvee — 
Extraordinary and unjust demands of canal company — Cause of 
phenomenal rise in value of stock — England's great gain — 
Egypt's first loan 193-212 

CHAPTER XIX 

Tragedy of Ismail Sadik Pasha — Arrival in Egypt of Messrs. Go- 
schen and Joubert — Demand of seven per cent interest — Egypt's 
indebtedness result of usury — Sadik Pasha, Minister of Finance 
— His cruelty — Accused of attempted insurrection — His resig- 
nation — Anger of Khedive — Sadik Pasha's mysterious disap- 
pearance — Secret trial — Banishment — Order of Sultan — Official 
death — Suppositions as to manner of execution — English Consul- 
General's despatches — Wealth of Mufcttish — His palaces, lands 
and slaves — Confiscation — Execution, imprisonment and flog- 
ging of natives by the English. 213-233 

CHAPTER XX 

Reign of the bondholders — Appointment of controllers — Condition 
of the country — Amount taken for interest — Vast landed estates 
of the Khedive — Indebtedness incurred in their acquisition — 
One million acres of crops per annum — Sugar-factories and rail- 
ways — Gift to the Government — Rothschild's loan — Discontent 
of people — Incipient rebellion — Ineffectual opposition of English 
and French Consuls-General to plans of European Ministers — 
New demands of Ministers — Moukabalah — Land-tax to be raised 



Contents xvii 



PAGE 

— Repudiation of Government indebtedness to natives — Refusal 
of Khedive to sanction these demands — Cowp d'etat — New Min- 
istry 234-246 



CHAPTER XXI 

Dethronement of Ismail Pasha — Failure of foreign Ministry — 
Famine in Upper Egypt — Its causes — Deficit in payment of in- 
terest — Sale of growing crops — Troops for Turco-Russian War — 
England's preponderance in Egypt — Difference in policy of Eng- 
lish and French — Dual Government — Germany enters upon the 
Bcene— England's acquiescence in the scheme of France for de- 
thronement — Vain attempts to secure voluntary abdication — 
Halim Pasha — Mohammedan law of succession — Mohammed Ali 
and suzerainty of Sultan — Removal of Khedive — Despatch to 
ex-Khedive Ismail Pasha — Prejudice against communicating 
unpleasant information — Cherif Pasha — Effect on the Khedive 
— ^Tewfik Pasha becomes Khedive — Meeting of father and son — 
Father salutes son as his lord, 247-263 



CHAPTER XXII 

Installation of Tewfik Pasha — Ismail consents to accession of his 
son — Notice of installation — Assembling of Diplomatic Corps and 
all the notables of Cairo — Accompanying Tewfik Pasha to Cita- 
del — Views of Cairo — The Mamelukes — Their slaughter by 
Mohammed Ali — The Citadel — Reading of the Imperial message 
— Reception of the Diplomatic Corps — The judges and notables — 
Homage of the new sovereign — Visit to Ismail Pasha — His ban- 
ishment — Parting of father and son — Homage of people to their 
dethroned sovereign — ^The ex-Khedive, the princes and their 
families sail from Alexandria — Meeting the Khedive in Naples, 
Milan and Paris — His death at Constantinople and burial in the 
Khedivial mausoleum 264-273 

CHAPTER XXIII 

Ismail Pasha and his reign — Excessive laudation and shameful 
calumniation — Safety of Christians — Results of removing a 
strong ruler — Improvement under his Highness in education and 
in all departments of modern civilization — Railroads — ^Telegraph 



xviii Contents 



/ 



PAGE 



— Increase of tillable land — Harbors — Docks — Lighthouses — 
Steamboats — Increase of territory — Abolition of slave-trade — 
Schools — Personal character — Difference between Egypt and 
rest of Ottoman Empire — Sir Wilfred Lawson — Cause of finan- 
cial embarrassment — Entertainments on opening of Suez Canal 
— High price of cotton — ^Troops for the Hedjaz and Crete — 
Personal supervision of extended enterprises — Real cause of 
financial failure — Want of information by the English people. 274-291 

CHAPTER XXIV 

Mixed tribunals — Jurisdiction of the courts — Foreign and native 
judges — Extraterritorial jurisdiction in non-Christian countries 
— Christian foreigners governed through consuls — Peculiarities 
of judicial proceedings — Language of the courts — Independence 
of courts — Extraordinary revenues — Testimony — No dissenting 
opinions— Organization of Tribunals — Code Napoleon — Ap- 
pointment as judge. ......... 292-300 

CHAPTER XXV 

Riots of Alexandria — Opposition to financial burdens imposed by 
foreign rule — Arabi Pasha — The Khedive — English and French 
fleets sent to Alexandria — Greek men-of-war — Commencement 
of the riots by a Maltese — The Greeks — Soldiers from the forts — 
Number of killed — Incorrect accounts for political effect — 
Alarm thus created — Futile attempt to show Arabi Pasha re- 
sponsible for riots — Arming of English and Greeks — Cause of 
bloody character of riots — Disappointment of French — ^War 
vessels in the harbor. ........ 301-313 

CHAPTER XXVI 

Bombardment of Alexandria — Twenty-four hours' notice given — 
Moving of fleets from the harbor — Anchored opposite the city — 
Morning of bombardment — Commencement of action — Bursting 
of shells and explosion of powder magazines — Old fortifications 
— Bravery of Egyptians — Burning of the city — Landing of 
Americans — Condition of burning city — The forts — Losses of 
English and Egyptians — Previous preparations for invasion of 
Egypt — Reasons given for bombardment 314-324 



Contents xix 

CHAPTER XXVII 

PAGE 

Return of the refugees — Shells falling in the city — First alarm of 
the inhabitants — Their flight — Return of Khedive — Interviews 
— Ordered Arabi not to permit the English to land — His High- 
ness' remarkable proclamation — Return of refugees — Fortifying 
Tell el-Kebir — Treachery of officer in command — Battle of Tell 
el-Kebtr — Number of killed — March to Cairo — Effort to have 
Arabi hung — Military occupation of English — Return of Khe- 
dive to Cairo — Commission of Indemnities — Manner of proceed- 
ing — Amount allowed on claims 325-336 

CHAPTER XXVIII 

The future of Egypt — Control of Suez Canal by England — Why 
England does not make Egypt an English province — Ruling 
through the Khedive — His Highness' allowances — Extraterri- 
torial rights — Sovereignty of the Sultan — Future condition of 
the people — Debt of Egypt — Dam of Assuan — Burdens of the 
people — Lord Cromer — Egyptians prefer native rulers — Manner 
of governing English non-Christian colonies — Government of 
India — The army a privileged class — Taxation and famines — 
Little hope of bettering the condition of the laboring class in 
Egypt 337-349 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



The Great Nile Bridge, Cairo frontzspiecb 

Barrage, near Cairo viii 

The Two Hassans 4 

Banyan Trees 6 

Ismail Pasha 10 

Raising Water with Shadufs 30 

The Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops) 36 

Valley of the Upper Nile at Time of Low Water . . 42 

The Dosseh 58 

Springs of Moses 68 

Plowing 110 

Port Said and Suez Canal with Lake Menzaleh in the Distance 130 

Map of Egypt 136 

Obelisk of Ramses II at Luxor 148 

Cleopatra's Needle as it Stood at Alexandria . . . 162 

Loading the Obelisk at Alexandria 168 

Cyclopean Walls, Baalbec, Syria 172 

Part of One of the Crabs that Supported Cleopatra's Needle . 174 

Obelisk in Central Park, New York 184 

Hieroglyphics of the Four Sides of the New York Obelisk . 190 

Threshing Machine 228 

Tewfik Pasha 262 

Cairo 266 

Place Mohammed Ali, Alexandria, After the Bombardment . 320 

Fort Ada, Alexandria, After the Bombardment . . . 322 



EGYPT AND ITS BETRAYAL 



EGYPT and its BETRAYAL 



CHAPTER I 



FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF EGYPT 



After a passage of six days from Marseilles on one of the 
steamers of the Messageries Maritimes, I arrived, at early dawn 
of a May morning, off Alexandria. The noise of lifting trunks 
and boxes from their place of storage announced to the passen- 
gers that they were approaching their destination. All were 
quickly on deck to catch the first view of the land of the Nile. 

The low coast is treeless and without any background of 
highlands. A light yellow line of sandy beach is first discerned 
through the morning haze. Beyond, farther to the east, soon 
appear the lighthouse, Pompey's Pillar, some fortified points, 
the masts of numerous ships in the harbor, and many wind- 
mills along the coast. 

We passed Point Marabout and, a little further on, Bab 
el-' Arab (Gate of the Bedouin), an ancient canal a mile in length 
which crosses the belt of land separating Lake Mareotis from 
the sea. Along this belt, from Marabout to the harbor, were 
fortifications, which gave no signs of hostility, but which, six 
years later, I was to behold enshrouded in the smoke of battle, 
amid the din of bursting shells and the roar of cannon. 

Near Bab el-' Arab is Mex and the ruins of the summer chateau 
of Said Pasha with its picturesque domes and towers. An Arab 
pilot having been taken on board, we continued our course 
eastward in a tortuous and difficult channel near a line of forti- 



2 J^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

fications. Passing on our left the lighthouse, erected on what 
was once the eastern end of the historic Island of Pharos, we 
entered the capacious ''Old Harbor of Alexandria" and dropped 
our anchor opposite Ras et-Tin (Cape of Figs) the summer 
palace of the Khedive. Here was the first scene of that pano- 
rama of Oriental life which was to be constantly unrolled be- 
fore me during a series of years, often grotesque but always 
charming. 

At that time there were no docks for large steamers and we 
were a mile from the place of landing. As soon as we were at 
anchor, the water around us was covered with small boats 
manned with turbaned Arabs in flowing robes ready to serve 
the passengers. And such a bedlam ! A hundred animated and 
apparently angry voices were shouting the jargon of an un- 
known language. Rival boats were pulling and pushing desper- 
ately for a position near the landing-stairway. Several Arabs 
pounced upon the hand baggage of the first passenger who 
descended, and a fierce struggle followed which was only settled 
by actual blows from some one in authority. Such was my 
introduction to the Arabs of Egypt, whom, in the end, I was 
to find a submissive and easily governed people. 

The Governor of the city had sent for me his private boat 
manned with soldiers, to which all the other boats quickly 
yielded their places. I was thus saved the annoyance of this 
:apparent mob of Arabs, who, from the first twilight of the 
inorning, had awaited our coming. Eight well- trained oarsmen 
brought our light boat quickly to the landing at the arsenal 
instead of to the usual landing at the custom-house. 

The arsenal is on the neck of land connecting the ancient I 
Island of Pharos with the site of the original city. This island, 
previous to the time of the Ptolemies, was a mile from the 
mainland. It is said that Alexander the Great, floating out of 
the Canopic branch of the Nile, followed the coast and ran in 



First Impressions of Egypt 3 

behind the island. It was the only shelter for ships on the 
coast of Egypt. Seeing its natural advantages, he ordered a 
city to be laid out and built. There was then on the mainland 
a village of fishermen called Rhakotis. 

Ptolemy Soter, or his son Philadelphus, connected the island 
with the mainland by an embankment called, from its length, 
the Heptastadium, seven stadia (about three-fourths of a mile). 
Through it were bridged passages for boats. These were long 
since filled by the debris of the city and the natural deposits of 
the sea, and the Heptastadium, now over half a mile in width, 
constitutes a considerable part of the Arab quarter of the city. 

On my way to my hotel in the European quarter I caught 
glimpses of those fascinating Oriental street scenes which never 
fail to delight the traveler. Some time afterwards, an American 
lady on her first visit to Egypt, whom I was accompanying from 
a steamer to the same hotel, exclaimed, on beholding one of the 
scenes of an Arab market day, ''This alone is worth a trip from 
America." 

I found at Alexandria the U. S. Vice-Consul-General, who had 
come from Cairo to meet me, with Hassan, one of the consular 
guards or kavasses. 

Hassan had already held his position eighteen years. He was 
an honest, faithful Arab, proud of his place, which was regarded 
as far above that of the common fellahin. He wore a showy, 
blue cloth costume trimmed with gold braid and carried a curved 
sword. On first seeing him with the Vice-Consul-General I was 
not aware of his precise position and duties. 

Having occasion to remain some time in my room at the hotel, 
I found him, when at last I went out, seated in the hall at my 
door. I probably, by look or word, expressed surprise, for he 
said, ''I am always with you." No words could better express 
the facts. At the office in the city, on my numerous excursions — 
up the Nile, to Palestine, to Mt. Sinai— everywhere, he was 



4 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

^'always with me," my faithful and invaluable servant, guard, 
and, with the Arabs outside of Cairo, my interpreter. In my 
drives he acted as footman, sat on the box beside the driver and 
carried a staff or baton surmounted by an eagle. 

His long experience, natural capacity, and absolute devotion 
to his duties, made him very useful. He had already gained a 
good name and had been frequently mentioned in the published 
writings of travelers. He had watched over two Consuls-General 
in their last hours and been faithful to all he had served. He had 
accompanied Consul-General Butler on his trip to Khartum with 
General Stanton, acting as generalissimo of a caravan of forty 
camels in a fourteen days' journey across the deserts, during 
which time water was found only once.^ 

After taking a drive through the city, visiting Cleopatra's 
Needle, which is now in New York, and Pompey's Pillar, which 
marks the site of the Serapeum, we left for Cairo on the afternoon 
train, reserving the further study of Alexandria for a future day. 

The distance to Cairo is one hundred and thirty miles. It was 
a hot, dusty ride, since it was the time of the low Nile, the most 
uninteresting part of the year. In this latitude the days are 
never long, and, while we were in time to get a distant view of 
the Pyramids at the setting of the sun, it was dark on my arrival 
at the ''Grand New Hotel." 

Though I was w^eary with a journey of nearly a month, my 
first night in Egypt was sleepless. The sudden change from the 
cool air of the sea intensified the effect of the tropical heat. The 
music in the gardens across the street, first European, and then 
Arab (or rather those discordant, grating sounds, both instru- 

1 This was at a period when the Khedive frequently entertained visitors in 
Toyal splendor. The journey was made at the expense of his Highness, Is- 
mail Pasha, in special steamers to the first and second cataracts of the Nile, 
thence by camels across the desert to Berber and again by steamer to Khartum. 
The distance traveled going and returning was nearly four thousand miles. 
The time then required for the journey was one month each way. 




The Two Hassans. 



I 



First Impressions of Egypt 5 

mental and vocal, which the Arabs call music), did not cease 
until a late hour. Afterwards, the barking of dogs and the sing- 
ing and screaming of youthful Arabs — the gamins of Cairo whose 
only homes are the streets — continued until dawn. It did not 
require many nights, however, to become accustomed to these 
strange noises. They were then no more the enemies of sleep 
than the winds and waves of the sea, or the ticking of the clock 
in the bedchamber. 

Dogs in Cairo, as in Constantinople and other Oriental Moslem 
cities, have no owners. They are called ''wild" simply because 
they are not domestic. They live in groups. Each group re- 
mains in its own well-defined quarter, and woe to the unfortunate 
cur who trespasses upon the grounds of another group than his 
own. The moment he crosses the line, he is unmercifully at- 
tacked by the united forces of the invaded territory. In these 
cities where the garbage is emptied into the streets or upon un- 
occupied grounds, the dogs become the city scavengers, Hke the 
turkey buzzards of Vera Cruz, and often dispute with the street 
beggars the choice morsels from improvident kitchens. 

The morning gave me my first view of Cairo. The hotel, an 
immense building, was then the private property of the Khe- 
dive. It was constructed to give ample accommodations to the 
guests at the celebration of the opening of the Suez Canal. It 
had a marble-floored terrace upon which its guests, protected 
from the sun by a canopy, could sit and view, while breathing 
the salubrious air of a delightful cUmate, passing scenes of un- 
speakable charm. Indeed, a visitor with leisure might spend 
hours and days there intently watching a constantly unfolding, 
never ending picture. 

The streets are thronged with passers-by. They resound with 
the continual and hurried tramp of a motley multitude. There 
are donkeys carrying travelers or the black-robed and closely 
veiled women of the lower middle class, which the hammars, or 



6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

donkey-boys, follow on a full run, urging them with loud cries and 
frequent applications of the whip. There are groups of camels 
loaded with grain; others, more fleet, bearing Bedouins; carriages 
with the thinly veiled beauties of the Khedivial harem attended 
by their eunuchs; other turnouts, less pretentious, with more 
conservative women (the wives and daughters of Beys and 
Pashas), also accompanied by their eunuchs. 

The sakka, or water-carrier, bearing his goatskin of water, is 
sprinkling the street, or giving drinks in brass cups to the 
passers-by, crying, ''May God recompense me!" in the hope of 
receiving a pittance. Consuls-General and Pashas pass in showy 
equipages preceded by picturesque and fleet seis, and the Khedive, 
with his guard of outriders and his seis crying, ''Clear the way!" 
There are soldiers escorted by bands of music, squalid beggars, 
jugglers, a continual tramp of Jew, Copt, Mohammedan and 
Christian, of Arab, Turk, Syrian, Armenian, Persian and Euro- 
pean, each in his characteristic costume. Such are the daily 
views of the endless panorama of enchanting street scenes in 
Cairo. 

On each side of the hotel terrace are gardens filled with tropi- 
cal trees and plants. Across the street in the heart of the Euro- 
pean quarter is the garden of Ezbekiyeh, with its lake, fountains, 
artificial mounds and grottoes, covering twenty or more acres. 
It has fine walks, and numerous rare shrubs and trees, many 
of which were brought from India. Among the trees are sev- 
eral banyans whose branches have dropped to the ground, and . 
their shoots taken root and formed new stocks. Ducks chatter 
in the artificial streams, black and white swans sail gracefully 
on the lakes, and little pleasure boats ply the waters for the 
amusement of the children. In the afternoon and evening, the { 
middle and lower class Cairenes swarm in this garden to enjoy i 
music and jugglery, thereby giving the stranger an admirable 
opportunity to see at its best the medley of people of all shades 



First Impressions of Egypt 7 

of color and of many religions and nationalities who make up 
the population of Cairo. Fine buildings, among them the Opera 
House and the large school of the American Mission, surround 
the garden on all sides. 

A short morning walk gave me a pleasant impression of my 
temporary home and a promise, which was to be fully realized, 
of a pleasant sojourn in the capital city of the Khedive. 



8 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER II 

RECEPTION BY HIS HIGHNESS THE KHEDIVE 

My first duty in Cairo was a visit to the Khedive, Ismail Pasha. 
This was made at the palace of Gezireh, the ^' Palace of the Is- 
land," on the west side of the Nile opposite the city. His High- 
ness had been notified of my arrival through Cherif Pasha, his 
Minister of Foreign Affairs, and had fixed the time and place of 
my informal and unofficial reception. 

I crossed the Nile, by the Great Bridge, to a long oval island 
and turned to the right into a broad avenue, between which and 
the river were many stately palms. On the other side, to the 
left, were botanical and zoological gardens, the latter then con- 
taining a variety of African and Asiatic animals, among them a 
small herd of elephants attended by their Indian keepers. These 
elephants were afterwards, on the advice of General Stone, sent 
to the upper Nile regions to perform carrier-service. 

At the end of this avenue was Gezireh, a comparatively small 
but magnificent palatial residence, which was commenced during 
our War of Secession, when Egypt was giddy with its suddenly 
acquired wealth, resulting from the high price of cotton. It 
was designed as a residence of pleasure only for a portion of the 
year. Adjoining it were large and beautiful gardens, in which 
was a kiosk decorated in Moorish style, and, at some distance 
from the palace, a building for the harem. 

This palace was occupied at the time of the celebration of the 
opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, first, by the Empress Eugenie, 
and, later, by Francis Joseph, Emperor of Austria. It was sub- 



Reception by the Khedive 9 

sequently occupied by other distinguished people, including the 
Prince of Wales. The property has been sold and transformed 
into a hotel largely patronized by English officers. The island 
is such only at the time of the high Nile, the western branch of 
the river being at other times dry. 

I entered the palace and was escorted by the Master of Cere- 
monies up a grand stairway of Carrara marble, and received by 
the Khedive in a magnificent reception room. His Highness met 
me at the door with a cordial welcome. After the introductions 
and the usual salutations, I took a seat at one end of a divan and 
the Khedive at the other, his feet drawn under him in Turkish 
style. Our conversation was of a very general character. His 
Highness welcomed me to his country, asked me if I was pleased 
with it and inquired as to the health of the President and the 
prosperity of my country. He hoped I would enjoy my residence 
at his Court and expressed himself as desirous of doing anything 
in his power to make it agreeable. As he did not speak English, 
our conversation was in French, a language which he spoke 
fluently. 

Physically, he was not prepossessing. He was then about 
forty-seven years old, short in stature, broad-shouldered, stocky 
and corpulent, his complexion slightly darker than that of Euro- 
peans. His eyeUds drooped — the left more than the right. When 
his features were in repose, his dark eyes seemed half closed. 
His eyebrows were dark, coarse, thick and projecting, and his 
dark brown beard was cut short. His ears were large and ill- 
shaped. He wore a black European suit, except that his coat 
was a stamboul, that is, a single breasted coat with a low standing 
collar. He wore also the red tarboosh. 

The Turks never appear with their heads uncovered. To do 
so would be a mark of the greatest disrespect. A young man, 
whose father had been one of the Sultan's Cabinet, and who was 
himself employed in one of the departments at Cairo, told me 



lo Egypt and its Betrayal 

that he had never, not even in his early childhood, appeared 
before his father with his head uncovered, that he would not 
dare to do such a thing, since he could not offer his parent a 
greater indignity. Riaz Pasha, afterwards the Khedive's Prime 
Minister, speaking of his first visit to Europe, told me of his aston- 
ishment at being requested to take off his tarboosh by the sexton 
of a church in Germany, which he was visiting. If a Mussulman 
should enter a mosque with his head uncovered, he would be 
ejected forthwith, and, if not with such force as to cause him 
bodily harm, he would be very fortunate. 

The fez, tarboosh, or turban is worn in the mosque, at public 
and private receptions, at meals, everywhere in fact that the 
Turk or Moslem goes. A woman who appears on the street must 
not only be veiled, but must have her entire head covered. It 
would be as unpardonable a breach of decorum to show the back 
of the head as the face. To do either would mean disgrace for 
life. 

The Khedive had the habit of talking with one eye closed, 
while, with the penetrating gaze of the other, he scrutinized, in 
the minutest details, the movements, the manner and almost 
the thoughts of those with whom he conversed. 

With all his peculiarities and physical disadvantages, he was 
a delightful conversationalist, frequently smiling, always affable 
and interesting. His voice was low and pleasant, his words, 
well chosen and expressive. He had remarkable intelligence and ' 
accurate knowledge, even of the details, of all that pertained to 
his Government and his very extensive private affairs. The 
keen and intelUgent glances of his eyes (when once they w^re ., 
fairly opened by animated conversation), his quick and apt !l 
responses, and his information regarding subjects with which 
he would naturally be supposed to be unacquainted, showed him, 
to all who had the pleasure of conversing with him, to be a 
man of no ordinary ability. 




Ismail Pasha. 



Reception by the Khedive ii 

According to the custom of the country no American could be 
presented to the Khedive except by his diplomatic representa- 
tive. I had occasion during my five years' residence in Cairo to 
perform this duty frequently, and it often happened that the 
visitor was astonished at the Khedive's remarkable intelligence. 
On the occasion of the presentation of the commander of one of 
our war vessels, the Khedive, after having asked him a series of 
questions relative to his ship, some of which he could not answer, 
entered into a detailed account of the same particulars upon his 
own ships. The captain and other officers who accompanied 
him expressed their great astonishment, after leaving his High- 
ness, at his knowledge of a man-of-war. It was the same in other 
matters. Soldier and civiUan were equally surprised by his de- 
tailed information. He had, furthermore, the rare faculty of 
gaining the confidence of his visitor by relieving him of all em- 
barrassment, and putting him completely at his ease. 

My official reception was long delayed on account of the non- 
arrival of the necessary papers from Constantinople. Nominally, 
the Khedive is the subject of the Sultan and, therefore, before a 
representative of a foreign government can be officially recog- 
nized in Egypt, the consent or order of the Sultan must be ob- 
tained. This is done through the minister of the government to 
be represented. The Government of the Sultan communicates 
with the Government of the Khedive to ascertain whether the 
appointee is satisfactory, whether he is a "persona grata." 

The work of the bureaucracy at Constantinople is notoriously 
slow, the slowest, perhaps, of that of any government in the 
world, and the murder of the Sultan, Abdul Aziz, which occurred 
two weeks after my arrival, added to the delay in the arrival of 
the required official documents. The death of Toussoum Pasha, 
Minister of the Marine and husband of the Princess Fatma 
Hanoum, the second and favorite daughter of the Khedive, 
also intervened and caused further delay. 



12 Egypt and its Betrayal 

The papers sent from Constantinople by Hon. Horace May- 
nard, then our Minister at the ''Sublime Porte," consisted of a 
firman, addressed to the Khedive, and a herat, addressed to me, 
specifying my official prerogatives. They were in the Turkish 
language, written in an ornamental style in large characters, 
the alternate lines being in different colors. They are now among 
my many souvenirs of Egypt. I insert a translation of the fir- 
man. It is a curious illustration of Orientalism. 

"To my noble Minister and high Khedive, the model of the world, the wise 
director of the affairs of State, the prudent provider of humanity, founder of 
the edifice of happiness and glory; you who fortify the columns of happiness 
and salvation, the favorite of the grace of God, Khedive of Egypt, decorated 
with the orders of the Osmanieh and Medjidieh of the first class; my Vizier, 
Ismail Pasha, glorious and mighty Emir, chosen by the grace of God. 

" On the receipt of the present be it known to you, that the United States 
Legation, residing at my gate of happiness, has made a 'takrir' informing me 
of the death of Mr. Beardsley, who was Consul-General of the United States 
in Egypt, and attended to the business of the merchants of the United States, 
going and coming in that country, and also informing me of the appointment 
of Mr. Elbert E. Farman, who has been supplied with my imperial berat, which 
is given to this Consul-General to be kept by him. My imperial command is, 
that he must be empowered to attend to the business of the citizens and mer- 
chants of the United States, who frequent that place, and that also, without 
any hindrance from any outsider, he be treated and assisted according to the 
terms of the existing treaties. A new firman has been given to him, and you 
will also treat him personally in accordance with the treaties. You, who are 
the aforesaid Khedive, will act according to the prescriptions of the said berat, 
and allow him to collect the consular duties on the imports and exports by 
American merchants, and you will see that no interference of any kind be 
allowed in his consular prerogatives. 

"This 2nd day of Djemaziul Ahir, 1293. 

"Seal of the Sultan, 

" by the Grand Vizier. 

The Porte omitted any mention in the herat of the diplomatic 
functions of a Consul-General to Egypt. The duties of the Agent 
and Consul-General of the United States to Egypt are both dip- 
lomatic and consular, but principally the former. The Agents 



Reception by the Khedive 13 

and Consuls-General of the Great Powers of Europe, which have 
consuls to perform the consular duties, are wholly diplomatic 
These exclusively diplomatic representatives are recognized 
by the Porte, however, only as Consuls-General, and their rank 
at the Court of the Khedive is the same as that of the other 
Agents and Consuls-General. 

At the official reception, which took place at the palace of 
Abdin, I presented personally to the Khedive, in accordance 
with my instructions, the letter of credence of the President, 
General Grant, a copy of which, furnished by the State Depart- 
ment at Washington for that purpose, had been previously 
delivered to Cherif Pasha. 

This letter was as follows: 



"Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States of America, 
"To his Highness, the Khedive of Egypt. 
"Great and Good Friend: 

"I have made choice of Elbert E. Farman, a citizen of the United 
States, as Agent and Consul-General of the United States of America to Egypt, 
to reside at Cairo, to watch over our interests, and by all honorable means to 
cultivate and to maintain the harmony and good will between us. 

"Therefore, I request your Highness to receive him in that character, to 
cause him to be duly respected, to give full credit to what he shall represent 
from his government, more especially when he shall assure your Highness of 
our cordial friendship, 

"Written at Washington the 13th day of April in the year of our Lord, one 
thousand eight hundred and seventy-six. 

" Your Good Friend, 

" U. S. Grant. 
"By the President, 

"J. L. Cadwalader, 

" Acting Secretary of State." 

Before the presentation of this letter, following the custom, 
I made a short address, in which I assured his Highness of the 
cordial friendship of the President and his desire to continue the 



14 Egypt and its Betrayal 

relations of amity existing between the Government of Egypt 
and that of the United States. 

The Khedive replied in Frenc'h, affirming his appreciation of 
the ^'friendly words," as he termed them, that had been spoken 
in the name of our Government and country, and requesting me 
to convey his sentiments of friendship to his Excellency General 
Grant. 

He also expressed a desire, not only to continue, but to 
strengthen the cordial relations which had always existed be- 
tween the United States of America and Egypt, and assured me 
that, under all circumstances, he would be disposed to aid me in 
the mission which had been confided to me by my Government. 

On this visit, I was accompanied, according to usage, by my 
Vice-Consul-General, my secretary and my four dragomans. 
The positions of the dragomans were simply honorary, as they 
only served on public, official occasions. They were persons of 
influence and, generally, of wealth, who rendered the occasional 
small services demanded of them in return for the protection 
given them. Being attaches of the Consulate-General, they were 
entitled to the rights and privileges of American citizens, and 
were thus frequently saved from the extortionate demands of 
the governors and other local officials of an autocratic govern- 
ment. 

The Ottoman Government, in pursuance of an old custom, 
permits four dragomans to each Consul-General. Theoretically, 
they form a part of the Consul-General's suite and act as secre- 
taries, interpreters and aids to him. There was also a regular 
employee of the office, who acted as Arab interpreter. 

After the presentation of the letter of credence, those present, 
including some Egyptian officials among whom was Cherif Pasha, 
were seated on Turkish divans. Pipes with long stems set with 
diamonds were presented, the bowls resting on silver plates 
placed on the floor. The stems were sufficiently long to permit 



Reception by the Khedive 15 

of the convenient use of the pipes in this manner. A few whiffs 
were taken, Turkish coffee was served, and, after a short con- 
versation between the Khedive and myself, his Highness arose 
and accompanied me to the door of the reception room. As I 
was about taking final leave, he expressed his regret that cir- 
cumstances had prevented him from receiving me in the custo- 
mary manner, adding that he would have the pleasure of so 
doing at a future time. 

I had supposed that this reception was to take the place of 
the more ceremonious one which I knew was customary in Egypt. 
The usual forty days of mourning had not elapsed since the death 
of Toussoum Pasha, and, in the letter fixing the place and date 
of the reception, we had been notified that the reception would 
be ^'without ceremony." 

At the time appointed for the final reception, Zecchi Pasha, 
then Master of Ceremonies, came to my residence, as the repre- 
sentative of the Khedive, with two coaches. One of these, in- 
tended solely for the Pasha and m.yself, was the royal gala coach, 
gilded as gaudily as a Barnum band-wagon, drawn by richly 
caparisoned white horses and accompanied by footmen and 
outriders. The other was for the consular suite. The Pasha 
was also attended by a body of cavalry mounted on white and 
gray horses, which escorted us to the palace. There a regiment 
of infantry was drawn up on either side of a large square in front 
of the main entrance. As we approached, firing of cannon from 
the Citadel commenced, and the soldiers saluted as we passed. 

At the palace entrance, we were met by Tonino Bey, the As- 
sistant Master of Ceremonies, and others of the Khedive's attend- 
ants. Ascending the grand stairway, we were received at its 
head by the Khedive and conducted into the reception room. 
After a few complimentary words between his Highness and 
myself, we were all seated, and pipes and coffee were served as 
on the previous occasion. When I took my leave, the Khedive 



1 6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

presented to me, as an emblem of my authority in his country, 
a curved sword with a Damascus blade and a scabbard with gold 
mountings. On quitting the palace we passed between the lines 
of soldiers, who again saluted us, and were conducted to our 
residence in the same manner, and with the same escort that had 
accompanied us to the palace. Official visits were then ex- 
changed, according to usage, with Cherif Pasha, with the sons 
of the Khedive and with certain other leading personages. 

The next morning, as a sequel to the reception, the coachmen, 
footmen and other servants of the Khedive, the Master of Cere- 
monies and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who had had the 
good fortune to be present at the ceremonies, came for the bak- 
shish (gifts) to which, according to the usage of such occasions, 
they were entitled. Custom had regulated the amounts to be 
given, which were as follows: Khedivial coachman, six pounds 
sterHng; second coachman, four pounds; footmen, four pounds; 
guards of Master of Ceremonies, five pounds; guards of Minister 
of Foreign Affairs, ten pounds; coachman of Minister, footmen 
and servants, five pounds; consular guards, one pound twelve 
shillings — a total of thirty-five pounds, twelve shillings sterling, 
or one hundred and seventy-three dollars. 

The Khedive gave our kavass, Hassan, sixteen napoleons 
(a little over sixty dollars) to be used in buying the new uniform 
which he was supposed to need on entering the employ of a new 
Agent and Consul-General. It was then the custom for the Khe- 
dive, on the occasion of the official reception of a newly arrived 
Consul-General, to present to him a fine horse, saddled and 
bridled in the most costly Oriental style — the large saddle cloth 
wrought with gold and all the other trappings ornamented with 
corresponding richness. 

This present had been accepted by the Consuls-General of all 
the Powers, including those of the United States, with the excep- 
tion of my immediate predecessor who had been instructed not 



Reception by the Khedive 17 

to receive it. This prohibition was repeated in my instructions. 
As it was known that the horse could not be accepted, it was 
not offered to me. Cherif Pasha had previously asked me, how- 
ever, in a conversation on the subject, what right the United 
States had to interfere with their ancient customs and had in- 
timated that he should offer the horse, leaving it to me to re- 
fuse the gift. 

The Khedive's groom, who would have followed me from the 
palace leading the horse had it been given and accepted, did not 
fail to come for his share of the bakshish. Why should he? It 
was not his fault that the Government of the United States, after 
permitting the acceptance of the horse for a long period, had come 
to the conclusion that it was unconstitutional. 

The custom of giving the horse was an old one which originated 
when there were no carriage-roads in Egypt, not even in the large 
cities of Alexandria and Cairo, and when a riding horse was a 
necessity for a person of position. At the time of my arrival, 
there were no carriage-roads outside of these two cities and their 
immediate vicinities, and there are very few now. The longest 
one of which I have any knowledge is that from Cairo to the 
Pyramids, a distance of about nine miles. 

Previous to my final official reception, I had frequently visited 
the Khedive and, thanks to his amiable, sociable character, I al- 
ready felt quite well acquainted with his Highness. I frequently 
had to perform the unpleasant duty of requesting unofficially, but 
with polite persistence, the payment of American claims against 
the Egyptian Government. While this was generally done before 
the Minister of Foreign Affairs, or the Minister of Finance, it 
was sometimes necessary to press the matter personally before 
the Khedive. The Egyptian Government v/as then in great 
financial embarrassment, and the mere mention of a pecuniary 
claim must have been annoying. With this exception, however, 
I had nothing to ask, while the European representatives had 



1 8 -^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

not only to make constant pecuniary demands, but to further 
political projects, which were of vital importance to the Khedive 
and, in the end, lost him his throne. When my arrival at 
the palace was announced, he had no fear of an unjust demand 
or of a pohtical intrigue on the part of my Government, and 
could receive me with sincere cordiality without fear of jeopard- 
izing his interests. In fact, at that time the United States and 
Russia were the only Great Powers that did not have some 
political ambition, direct or indirect, relative to Egypt. This 
state of affairs was of much aid in securing the payment of 
American claims, which were finally all satisfactorily adjusted, 
being paid in full. For this result I was greatly indebted to the 
friendliness of the Khedive. 



Mysteries of the Nile 19 



CHAPTER III 

MYSTERIES OF THE NILE AND IRRIGATION 

Egypt is a land of surprises and Cairo is one of the most fasci- 
nating cities in the world. No other city is so picturesque. No 
other country is so marvelously novel in its scenes; no other has 
so much which interests both the seeker after pleasure and the 
seeker after knowledge. At every turn in both city and country 
there is a fresh surprise, a new pleasure. The mosques, the tomb- 
mosques of the Mameluke Khalifs, the tombs of the present 
dynasty, the Arab cemetery, the old palaces, the narrow streets 
with their surging masses and overhanging Arabian architecture, 
the wonderful bazaars, filled with gorgeous. Oriental trappings, 
the collection of Pharaonic antiquities, the Citadel with its pal- 
aces, the alabaster Mosque of Mohammed Ali, the glorious views, 
the deserts, the petrified forests, the white fossiliferous rocks of 
the Mokattam Hills, the Pyramids, the Sphinx and the marvelous 
ancient tombs, the Nile and the fields of its valley, the varied 
costumes and habits of the people, — all these combine to produce 
an effect not equaled anywhere else upon the planet. 

These scenes are so indelibly engraved upon the memory, that 
after many years of the prosaic, commonplace scenes of life, one, 
"who has once drunk of the waters of the Nile," longs again to 
bask in Egypt's genial atmosphere and re-enjoy the delights 
that in the retrospect seem only the dream of a mysterious land, 
lighted by the transforming rays of Aladdin's lamp. 

Twenty- three hundred and fifty years ago, Herodotus, 'Hhe 



2 ^^^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

father of history," in speaking of Egypt said, ''It possessed more 
wonders than any other country and exhibited works greater 
than could be described, in comparison with all other regions." * 
Since that date, it has never ceased to excite the admiration of the 
traveler, the historian, the lover of the marvelous, the beautiful, 
the grand. Geographically, it is simply an oasis surrounded, 
except on the north, by vast deserts. By the ancients it was 
called the ''Black Land" from its dark alluvial deposits, "the 
gift of the Nile," ^ which produce a marked contrast with the 
yellow sands of the desert. 

From the earliest times, it has been the garden and the grain 
field of that section of the Orient, its one reliable source of food. 
It supplies its own people (formerly more numerous than at 
present) and the nomadic tribes of the adjoining deserts, and 
furnishes large amounts of grain, sugar and cotton for exporta- 
tion. Thirty-six centuries ago, Jacob said unto his sons, "I 
have heard that there is corn in Egypt, get ye down thither and 
buy for us from thence, that we may Uve and not die." Since 
that day, with few exceptions, Egypt has not failed to bring 
forth abundant annual and semi-annual harvests. 

In 1880 it contained only about five million acres of productive 
land, an area less than one-sixth of that of the state of New York. 
Small as it is, it has never ceased (either in ancient or modern 
times) to attract the cupidity of foreigners. It has suffered many 
conquests, and to-day the very riches of its soil subject its people 
to burdens and sufferings from which those dwelling in moun- 
tainous and sterile regions happily escape. The mysterious Nile, 
the "issue of Osiris," is the source of its fertility and wealth. 

In the small oases, water is taken from the wells and springs, 
and a small amount of land is thus irrigated and cultivated. In 
the valley and delta of the Nile, water is taken from the river 
for the same purpose. There are no rains of any practical im- 

1 Her. II, 35. ^ Her. II, 5. 



Mysteries of the Nile 2 i 

portance. The Nile sustains all vegetation, and the inhabitants 
of Egypt and their herds drink only of its waters. It is to this 
country the source of Ufe, animal and vegetable. Its waters, 
if too abundant, produce great destruction, if too scanty, famine. 
Should it cease to flow, every plant, shrul) and tree would wither 
and die. In less than three months, the whole country would 
be as arid, as desolate and uninhabitable as the Great Sahara. 
The millions of native inhabitants, who have never drunk any 
other water, await its accustomed annual rise with more solici- 
tude than a northern farmer awaits the return of spring. 

To the ancient Egyptians the Nile was a deity, whose mys- 
teries were the most sacred secrets. Its sources, the cause of its 
annual overflow in the heat and dryness of summer, its decline 
in winter, and its Hfe-giving properties were, to them, like the 
attributes of other deities, phenomena beyond the ken of mor- 
tals and too sacred for their investigation. 

Many wise men of other nations speculated and wrote upon 
these subjects and generally advanced the most absurd theories. 
Herodotus relates that, of all the Egyptians, Lybians or Grecians 
with whom he conversed, the only man who pretended to know 
anything about the sources of the Nile was the registrar of the 
treasury of Minerva at Sais in Egypt. His account was as fol- 
lows: 

''There are two mountains rising in a sharp peak, situated 
between the city of Syene in Thebias and Elephantine. . . . The 
sources of the Nile, which is bottomless, flow from between the 
mountains; the half of the water flows over Egypt to the north, 
the other half over Ethiopa to the south." ^ 

This account fixes the sources of the Nile at the First Cataract, 
a point which Herodotus afterwards visited, learning the in- 

1 Her. II, 28. 



2 2 Egypt and its Betrayal 

correctness of his information, but without obtaining any knowl- 
edge of the real facts. 

The Greek philosopher and mathematician Thales, one of the 
^' seven wise men/' who went to Egypt about 600 b. c, gave his 
opinion of the cause of the rise of the Nile as follows : 

''The Etesian winds that beat fiercely upon the mouth of the 
river, give a check and stop to the current, and so hinder it from 
flowing into the sea, from which cause, the river swelUng and its 
channel filled with water, at length overflows the country which 
is low." 

The philosopher Anaxagoras '' ascribed the rise to the melting 
of snow in Ethiopia." 
His pupil Euripides, has left us these lines : 

''The river Nile .... which, flowing from the Negro's parched 
land, swells big when the melting snow to the river takes." 

Ephorus says : 

"The whole land of Egypt is cast up from the river, and the 
soil is of a loose and spongy nature, and has in it many large 
cliffs and hollow places, wherein are abundance of water, which 
in the winter time is frozen up, and in the summer issues out on 
every side, Hke sweat from the pores, which occasions the rise 
of the Nile." 

There are other equally absurd and, to us, amusing theories, 
brought forth with much labor by ancient Greek sages. When 
we read of the winds stopping the flow of a mighty river, causing 
it for months to inundate the country, or of waters frozen up in 
a country of perpetual summer and coming forth in abundance 
in the excessive heat, we wonder if two thousand years hence 
much of the wisdom of the sages of the nineteenth century will 
appear equally absurd and childish. 



Mysteries of the Nile 23 

Homer, though he knew nothing of the facts, was correct in 
calling the Nile '^ heaven descended" in the line ^' Back to Egypt's 
heaven descended stream." ^ 

Simple as they now appear, it required more than two thousand 
years to solve the mysteries of the sources and the annual over- 
flow of the Nile. It was only in the present generation that the 
facts were fully known and the phenomena satisfactorily ex- 
plained, though the problem had long ceased to be other than a 
geographical one. 

With a full knowledge of the wonderful provisions of nature 
for the supply of the waters, and the regulation of their flow, 
admiration took the place of idolatry. The Arab of to-day, 
without the blindness begotten by superstition, can spread his 
carpet and, turning toward Mecca, bow in silent prayer to Allah, 
offering devout thanks for the rise of the waters that are to give 
him green fields and an abundant harvest. 

There are two seasons in Egypt, a long, hot summer and a 
short winter. In the latter, the temperature descends to the 
freezing point only once in a score of years, producing a little 
white frost. In the month of June, the heat becomes excessively 
oppressive, the soil, dried and parched, opening in great seams. 
The plants are withered, the foliage drooping, and the whole 
face of the country scorched and seared. Then the Nile, which 
has sunk deep in its bed, having reached its lowest point, sud- 
denly begins to rise. Without a cloud in the heavens, and in 
spite of the augmenting heat, it continues to increase in volume 
until September, sometimes until October, when it overflows all 
the lands not protected by dikes. 

The regions whence came the great river were, so far as they 
were known to the ancient Egyptians, hke their own country, 
without rain. It is not surprising that they should have re- 
garded phenomena which they were unable to explain with 

1 Od. IV, 581. 



24 Kgvpt aiul its Betrayal 

superstitious :i\\t.\ niul ascribocl to the rivor tlio Htlributo^ of 
IVity. 

The Nile has its sources in the Albert and Victoria Nyanzas, 
great lakes of Central Africa, the latter eight hundred miles in 
circumference. These lakes are the recipients of the rainfall of 
a large surrounding country. They are in great basins of moun 
tainous regions Nvhere it rains almost continually for more than 
six months of the year, during uhich the \'ictoria Nyanza is said 
to rise more than three t'eet. This lake is the unfailing source — 
nature's vast reservoir which, with great regularity, supplies 
the Nile. 

The waters of the \'ictoria Nyanza flow into the Albert Ny- 
miza, and the outlet of Albert Nyanza is, strictly speaking, the 
eonunencement of the Nile. There are large tracts of low coun- 
try below this outlet which are overflowed during the rainy 
season, adding largely to the amount of storage. 

The annual rise of the river and the consequent inundations 
are the result of the rains in the mountainous districts of Occiden- 
tal Abyssinia, which form the Blue Nile and the iVtbara. The 
former makes its junctit^n with the \Mute Nile at Khartum, and 
the latter empties into the Nile two hundred miles below. These 
two tributaries supply the sand and soil which make the Nile 
a muddy stream, as the Yellowstone does the Missouri. In the 
dry season they are small rivei*s, especially the Atbara, which 
nearly ceases its flow. In many places it then presents only a 
dry lx\i of rocks and sand with an occasional deep pool — the 
home of the crocodile and the hippopotamus. To these pools, 
the rhinoceros, the elephant, the tiger, the lion and the wild boar 
come to slake their thirst. In the rainy season it becomes a 
raging river, deep, broad and rapid, bringing down inmiense ] 
quantities of earth, sand and trees. 1 

Below the Atbara, the Nile has no tributary, not even a ri-viilet, 
in its eoiu^e of sixteen lumihred miles to the sea. Consequently 



iMysterics of the Nile 25 

it does not, like other rivers, constantly increase in volume in its 
onward flow. On i\\(t contrary, as it passes through the desert 
regions of Sudan, its waters are continually diminished by ab- 
sorption and evaporation, and, in Kgypt, by their abundant use 
for irrigation . Yet they reach the sea through two great branches, 
each large enough to constitute a magnificent river, carrying 
with them immense alluvial deposits. 

From a very early period man has employed his skill in utiliz- 
ing the waters thus munificently and providentially furn- 
ished. 

Strabo says : 

"The attention and care bestowed upon the Nile is so great as 
to cause industry to triumph over nature. The ground by nature, 
and still more by being supplied with water, produces a great 
abundance of fruits. By nature also a greater rise of the river ir- 
rigatfis a larger tract of land; but industry has completely suc- 
ceeded in rectifying the deficiency of nature, so that, in seasons 
when the rise of the river has been less than usual, as large a 
portion of the country is irrigated by means of canals and em- 
bankments, as in seasons when the rise of the river has been 
greater." ^ 

This gives us the conditions at the beginning of the Christian 
era; but Egypt's system of irrigation did not originate with the 
Romans, nor with their immediate predecessors, the Greeks. It 
dates far back, to a time earlier, perhaps, than the dawn of Pha- 
raonic history. 

The luxuriance of the agricultural products of Egypt is not 
surpassed by that of any country. The labor required is pro- 
portionately great. No one, who has not made a special study of 
the subject, has more than the vaguest conception of the amount 
of labor necessary to raise, conduct and distribute the waters 

1 Strabo, XVII, 3. 



2 6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

of the great river, at precisely the right time, and in the required 
quantities, upon every acre of cultivated land. 

The processes of flooding, plowing, sowing and harvesting are 
often carried on simultaneously in adjoining fields. It is neces- 
sary to irrigate the lands several times before the maturity of 
the crop, the quantity of water depending upon the kind of 
produce. Rice and sugar-cane require large amounts of water; 
wheat, oats and rye, much less. 

There are in Egypt eight thousand five hundred miles of large 
irrigating canals, of which two thousand miles are navigable. 
These form the great system of arteries for the conveying of 
water to all parts of the country, while forty-five thousand miles 
of small canals, or ditches, serve to distribute the water upon the 
lands and to faciUtate the drainage. 

There are also great dikes, twenty and thirty feet high, and 
two to three times as many feet in breadth, on either side of 
the river and its branches in the Delta — to keep the waters in 
their beds during the high Nile. 

In Upper Egypt there are hundreds of miles of collateral 
embankments of the same character as the Delta dikes, and 
others of serpentine form running across the valley. There are 
also numerous small dikes throughout the country. All of these 
serve some important purpose in this great system of irrigation. 
Whether we look upon that part which nature has done, or that 
which has been the work of man, it is a system of water supply 
that in its perfection and magnitude has no equal. It furnishes 
all the water, and that of the best quaUty, used by eight millions 
of people and their animals. It irrigates and fertilizes all the 
land. Without it, not a cask of sugar, a bushel of wheat, nor a 
pound of cotton could be produced. 

Earth is a good disinfectant and the waters of the Nile below 
the Blue Nile and the Atbara are filled with soil. When this is 
removed by filtration, or even by allowing the waters to settle, 



Mysteries of the Nile 27 

they are both palatable and wholesome. No water is more 
healthy or more agreeable to the taste. The same is true of the 
waters of the Missouri, and for the same reasons. In both cases, 
a current of three miles or upward per hour causes the water to 
float constantly a large quantity of earth, thus continuing and 
perfecting the process of disinfection. 

The deposits, which are distributed upon the land by repeated 
irrigations, contain a large percentage of carbonate of lime, oxide 
of iron, and carbonate of magnesia. They are generally sufficient 
to maintain its fertihty, though land that is also otherwise 
fertilized produces much more luxuriantly. The amount of 
deposits is large, rendering the frequent cleaning of the canals 
necessary. This requires, for the large canals, the labor of at 
least two hundred thousand people six months in each year. 

The high waters injure the dikes, carrying away large amounts 
of earth and thus necessitating frequent repairs. When the 
waters are the lowest, in April, May and June, the people are 
seen in throngs repairing the damaged embankments, and clean- 
ing the canals. This work was done until recently by a system 
of enforced labor, known as the corvee,'^ which had existed in 
Egypt since the days of the Pharaohs. It was a '' levee en massed 
All the people (men, women and children) were taken from the 
rural villages, often to a considerable distance, and kept without 
pay, twenty, thirty, or more days, according to the requirements 
of the service. Within a space of three or four miles as many 
thousand people could be seen working on the embankments or 
cleaning the canals. These works Uterally swarmed with human 
beings. Under their overseers, who stood by, whip in hand, they 
were as busy as ants. The adult men dug up the earth with rude 

1 In 1890, the corvee was nominally abolished, and the fellahin now receive 
compensation for their labor, which is paid from the tax receipts; but they 
must continue to perform the required service as formerly, if reasonable con- 
tracts for the work cannot be made. 



2 8 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

mattocks and filled baskets, which were carried by the women 
and children, on their heads, up the steep embankments of the 
dikes and canals. 

At the time of the digging of the Suez Canal, these corvee 
slaves did not always have the luxury of baskets. They impro- 
vised baskets by clasping their arms over their backs. They 
climbed the high embankments with bended forms and straight- 
ened themselves at the top, permitting their loads to fall. Many 
thousands died while engaged in this great work. 

When the corvee system was in force, the overseer was not only 
always ready, but quick, to chastise the laggard, old or young, 
male or female; and, if the work did not progress with sufficient 
rapidity to satisfy the governor of the province or his agents? 
the overseer himself was whipped in his turn, as in the days of 
Moses. ^'And the officers of the children of Israel, which Pha- 
raoh's taskmasters had set over them, were beaten." ^ 

The overseers were generally the sheiks (chiefs) of the vil- 
lages in which these people resided, and were held responsible 
both for their taxes and for the performance of their allotted 
share of public work. 

The traveler who remains in Egypt till May and June can 
witness the novel scenes presented by these dense masses of 
laborers, of both sexes and all ages, with their peculiar dress 
(or, frequently, lack of dress) and their mode of work. 

They sleep upon the ground at the place of their labors, 
literally covering it with a mass of humanity. If there is a dry 
sand bank in the vicinity, it is a great luxury. It is soft, fits the 
tired, aching body that has borne the toil and heat of the day 
and, in the warm nights of summer, makes a most enjoyable 
bed. Besides, the atmosphere is dry and invigorating. With 
the always clear, deep, blue vault of heaven lit by myriads of 
celestial lamps for their canopy, they rest from their toils, sleep- 

1 Ex. V, 14. 



Mysteries of the Nile 29 

ing as soundly as the more favored sons of man. For covering, 
they have whatever they have worn during the day, and, some- 
times, a blanket. They are awakened at the early dawn. No 
time is required for the making of toilets. A piece of coarse 
bread and a draught of Nile water suffice for the breakfast. 
After these summary preliminaries, they are hurried to their 
tasks. 

The canals that are thus cleaned by public service are the main 
arteries conducting the waters from the river to the vicinity 
of the lands to be irrigated, and it is at this point that the great 
work of the proprietors of the land begins. 

During the continuance of the high waters irrigation is not 
difficult, though the constructing of sluices and dikes, the digging 
of ditches, the cleaning and repairing, and the distributing of 
the waters requires a very large amount of labor. 

At the time of the high Nile, the whole country would be 
flooded were it not for the dikes. In a considerable part of Upper 
Egypt and a portion of the Delta, this is still permitted. The 
country then assumes in many places the appearance of a great 
lake dotted with numerous islands, the latter being formed by 
the fellah-villages with their ever-accompanying groups of palm- 
trees. These village-islands are often connected with each other 
by the dikes or by high embankments along the canals formed 
by the earth accumulated from the cleanings of long periods. 

The waters slowly recede, the lands are prepared, often with 
much labor, and are sowed or planted. The grain quickly sprouts 
in the warm, moist soil and sends forth its young blades. The 
fields are clothed in the rich, dark green of spring, though it is 
really late fall or the beginning of winter. Soon, more water is 
needed. If the river or canals are still full, it is let upon the 
lands, as in the first irrigation. If they are too low, it must be 
raised by pumping or in some other manner. 

In much of the Delta the water is kept, by means of the canals, 



30 Egypt and its Betrayal 

on a higher level than the lands for the larger part of the year. 
But the raising of the water by pumping, or otherwise, com- 
mences in some parts of the country within one or two months 
after the high waters and continues till the rise of the river the 
following summer. For the second crop, which is quite generally 
produced, the larger part of the water must be thus raised. 

The fall of the river from its highest rise is, at Cairo, twenty- 
five feet, at Thebes, thirty-eight feet, at Assuan, forty-seven 
feet. At the time of the lowest waters, the river is in some 
places thirty or forty feet below the top of the bank, and the 
water, when it has not been brought by canals from points higher 
up the river, must be raised this distance for purposes of irriga- 
tion. 

Dipping, drawing and pumping are continued in some sections 
the greater part of the year and more than half of the lands are 
irrigated a portion of the time by some of these means. If the 
water is required to be raised twenty feet up the banks of the 
river, as in Upper Egypt during the winter months, it is generally 
done by the shaduf . This is a rude appliance resembling the old 
well-sweep, with a basket-shaped bucket attached to one end 
by palmsticks, and a mud-weight, to act as a balance, at the 
other. The bucket is made of matting, leather or woolen stuff, 
fastened to a hoop, which forms the rim. The sweep is short and 
rests upon a horizontal bar supported by two posts set in the 
ground. By this means water can be raised about eight feet 
with great rapidity. 

When the Nile is very low, it sometimes requires four or five 
shadufs, one above the other, to raise the water to the level of 
the lands to be irrigated. The mean height during the season, 
in Upper Egypt, would be about twenty-five feet. The water 
is ordinarily raised this distance by the use of five shadufs, one 
worked singly and the others in pairs. By the first shaduf, a 
man near the river raises the water four or five feet, emptying 




Eaising Water with Shadufs for Irrigating Eice Fields. 



Mysteries of the Nile 3 i 

it into a basin made in the side of the bank. From this point, 
two men, each with a shaduf, lift it to a second basin, then two 
more to a third basin and so on till the required height is at- 
tained. It is then conducted onto the land, sometimes a mile 
or more distant, by earth-sluices constructed on the top of low 
embankments. 

If the water is to be raised twenty-five feet, the constant work- 
ing of five shadufs for forty-eight hours would be required to irri- 
gate one feddan (acre). In other words, by changing once in six 
hours, ten men would work twenty-four hours each to water 
one acre. The process must be repeated at least three times for 
each crop. Thus the labor required for the irrigation of one acre 
would be seventy-two days of ten hours each. 

Crops requiring a large amount of water, such as cotton, rice 
and sugar-cane, are generally produced where the labor of irri- 
gation is less. On some of the larger estates steam pumps are 
used, but the fuel (coal) is brought from England, and is too 
expensive for general use, where labor is so cheap. There were 
in 1880 about four hundred steam pumps employed. 

When water is raised by the shaduf, or other hand process, 
the minimum labor per acre is fifteen days, and the maximum 
not less than one hundred ; yet, so cheap is labor, large areas of 
land are thus irrigated. 

In 1873, according to official records, there were in four prov- 
inces of Egypt eighty thousand five hundred and thirty-six com- 
mon field-laborers, whose average pay was five and three-eighths 
to seven and a half cents a day. In only two provinces did it 
exceed ten cents a day, and the average price of all the labor of 
this class was seven and a half cents a day. It must not be under- 
stood that the laborer was furnished with food, as is generally 
the case on farms in the United States. This he furnished him- 
self. Hence, the prices above named were the full cost of the 
labor. 



32 Egypt and its Betrayal 

Even at these low prices the laborer did not find constant 
employment. He was only hired by the day at such times as 
his services were required. He was also subject to a personal 
tax, which, though small, represented from ten to twenty-five 
days' labor a year. The present average price of labor is ten to 
fifteen cents a day, but the price of food has been proportionately 
increased. 

Of the means of irrigation other than those above mentioned, 
the Sakiyeh is the most employed. The Sakiyeh is in common 
use in the Delta where there are said to be over fifty thousand 
of them. It is a rude machine on the principle of the endless 
chain. It is propelled by oxen, cows and horses, sometimes, 
by camels and donkeys, and raises the water by means of earthen 
jars attached to an endless rope-chain passing over a vertical 
wheel. This machine is generally used in raising water from 
large wells having openings into canals. Throughout the Delta 
the water generally stands in the soil on a level with the waters 
of the river in the same locality. A large well, having no direct 
connection with a canal or the river, will generally yield a goodly 
amount of water, but only sufficient to irrigate a small parcel of 
land. 



Mysteries of the Nile 33 



CHAPTER IV 



MYSTERIES OF THE NILE 



At the time of my residence in Cairo, there were many festiv- 
ities and ceremonies connected with the rise of the Nile, which 
had their origin in periods when the river was still a solemn 
mystery and an object of awe and veneration. On the night of 
the 17th of Jmie, according to the belief of the ancient Egyptians, 
a tear of Isis dropped from the heavens into the river, causing 
the rise, which was supposed to commence at that date. It is, 
as a matter of fact, at about this date that the annual rise com- 
mences. This night, though less observed than formerly, was 
still celebrated in the seventies by those living on the banks of 
the river and such friends as chose to join them, with various 
superstitious ceremonies. 

Soon after this date, the rise of the waters becomes perceptible 
to the anxious watchers along the river, and, each morning, 
criers in different parts of the city pass along the narrow, 
crowded streets, announcing in a loud voice the amount of 
rise, or the point to which the waters have attained according 
to the official statement of the sheik in charge of the Nilometer. 

One of the most interesting ceremonies I witnessed was the 
cutting of the dam, built each year at the time of the low water, 
across the canal El-Khalig, which, previous to the construction 
during the reign of Ismail Pasha of an admirable system of water 
works, furnished the water for the city of Cairo. Until a very 
recent date it supplied a large number of native inhabitants, 



34 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

who preferred the old system, erroneously believing it more con- 
ducive to health. 

The canal was deep and ran from a point in Old Cairo, opposite 
the Island of Roda, to and through the native or old part of the 
present city. It is said to have been made by Amru, Khalif 
Omar's General, after his conquest of Egypt in a. d. 641, for the 
purpose of connecting the Nile with the Red Sea. He continued 
it to a point near Bubastis, where it joined with an old canal 
running to the Bitter Lakes and probably thence to the Red Sea. 
It has long been filled up, except that part running through 
Cairo, which emptied, immediately after leaving the city, into 
the great canal constructed to convey fresh water to the Suez 
Canal at Ismailiya and thence to Suez. 

This short canal, supplying the city of Cairo, was kept open 
by frequent cleanings. It was dry for several months each year. 
At the time of the high water, large cisterns along its line were 
filled and from these the water was taken throughout the year 
and carried in skins to the consumers. 

Water-carriers are constantly seen in the streets selling water, 
and also furnishing it to the thirsty passers-by gratuitously, or 
for such pittance as they may choose to give. It is usually sold 
from skins, but sometimes from earthen vessels. In either case, 
the water is served in small brass cups, which the carrier con- 
stantly strikes one against another, calling attention to his 
vocation by their sharp ring. 

Previous to my departure for Europe, during my first summer 
in Cairo, I was invited by the Governor of the city to be present 
at the ceremonies of the cutting of the dam. This took place 
near the middle of August, when the Nile had reached a height 
which gave promise of sufficient water to insure a plentiful 
harvest. It was an event which was then celebrated with real 
joy and, as might be expected from the nature and habits of the 
Arabs of the lower classes, with noisy festivities. 



Mysteries of the Nile 35 

The principal ceremony took place in the early morning at the 
head of the canal in Old Cairo. All Cairo was alive soon after 
dawn. Boys carrying flags attended the criers, who announced 
with unusual emphasis the glad tidings of an abundant flow of 
the Nile. A ride of about three miles over a road of deep, fine 
sand, through a then sparsely built quarter, brought me to the 
dam, at the entrance of Old Cairo. 

What is now known as Old Cairo is a small town built on and 
around the site of the ^'Babylon in Egypt" of the Romans. 
This was an immense fortress, in which were stationed the Roman 
soldiers who aided in holding Egypt in subjection first to Rome 
and then to the Byzantine emperors, until it was taken by Amru 
after a long siege. The place was known in the early Mohamme- 
dan period as Fostat. The ruined walls of the fortress still exist 
and within them is the principal part of the present town, includ- 
ing a number of old, interesting, Coptic convents and churches. 

On my arrival at the dam, I found a throng of many thou- 
sands of people, mostly of the lower classes, many of whom had 
been there throughout the night. There were tents along the 
banks of the Nile and the canal and boats loaded with people 
on the small branch of the river separating the Island of Roda 
from the mainland. The tent of the Governor, to which I was 
invited, was on the bank of the canal directly above the dam, and 
in its front was a platform built out even with the edge of the 
water. 

The tent was guarded by soldiers, who had accompanied the 
Governor, and was occupied by his Excellency, his assistants 
and a number of Europeans. From the platform' was a view on 
the west of the river, of the Island of Roda with its high surround- 
ing walls, its beautiful gardens, palm trees and Nilometer. Be- 
yond, a few miles distant on the other side of the valley, were 
the Pyramids. In front was the high wall of the ruined aque- 
duct of Saladin, rebuilt in 1518, obstructing the view of the domes 



2 6 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

and minarets of the mosques, the towers of the Coptic churches, 
and the prison-Hke walls of the convents of Old Cairo. 

The booths of the sellers of bonbons, fruits, bread and other 
edibles, who are always in evidence on festive occasions, were 
surrounded by crowds. The clinking of the cups of the ever- 
present water-carriers, the discordant sounds of native music, 
the cries of the Cairene gamins and the general noise of the multi- 
tude were, I doubt not, manifestations of sufficient joyousness 
to satisfy even an Arab's love of the tumultuous, though scarcely 
surpassing in this respect an American Fourth of July. 

The dam was a thick, high bank of earth and the waters on its 
upper side reached nearly to its top. A large number of men had 
been at work during the night digging down this bank, on the 
lower side, and carrying the earth out in baskets. 

The men were still at work, but cautiously and ready to move 
at a moment's warning. We had not long to wait. The waters 
burst through, quickly sweeping away the balance of the embank- 
ment and, moving with great force down the canal, soon filled 
it nearly to the level of the river. 

The Governor then appeared at the front of the platform and 
commenced sowing newly coined piastres broadcast on the waters. 
These are of the value of five cents, nominally of silver, but much 
alloyed. At the same moment many Arabs, each slipping off 
his single garment, plunged into the waters in search of the treas- 
ures. Some were unable to stem the current, and others with 
the agility of fish dove and scoured the bottom bringing up the 
shining pieces. In a few moments the canal was filled with men 
swimming, grappling and struggling with each other for a place 
in this amphibious throng. 

At the cutting of the dam, Arabs were sometimes carried 
away by the current and drowned, although many of them are 
expert swimmers. The throwing of the silver into the waters 
was an old custom which had probably succeeded other customs. 




The Great Pyramid of Khiifu or Cheops. 



Mysteries of the Nile 37 

It was continued to satisfy the superstition of the people who 
had come to believe that it had some influence in producing the 
rise of the river. 

In a conversation with the Governor, on a subsequent similar 
occasion, he told me that the question of discontinuing the throw- 
ing of silver into the waters had been considered, but that no 
Governor had been willing to assume the responsibility of the 
omission, knowing that, should it be followed by a low Nile, he 
would be looked upon by many as the cause and suffer in reputa- 
tion and influence among a large class. The canal El-Khalig has 
recently been filled and the ceremonies of cutting the dam will 
henceforth exist only in history. 

According to Moslem tradition, the Coptic Christians, previous 
to the conquest of Omar, sacrificed at this place every year to 
the God of the Nile a beautiful virgin, whom they dressed in 
bridal robes and cast into the river. This tradition has not been 
authenticated. According to some writers, an image, instead 
of the virgin, has in recent times, even within a few years, been 
thrown into the waters, but nothing of the kind took place on 
the occasions when I was present at these ceremonies. 

As soon as the canal was sufficiently filled, boats, gorgeously 
pavilioned, sailed in from the river, the Governor and his escort 
retired and the people commenced dispersing. 

I have already mentioned the Island of Roda as lying near the 
canal just described. It is now principally visited on account 
of its famous Nilometer. An Arab tradition that it was among 
the flags on its shore that Moses was found by the daughter of 
Pharaoh lends it an additional attraction. It also possesses the 
^Hree of Moses" and the ^'tree of Saint Mandura," a venerable 
millenarian planted by Fatima, the daughter of Mohammed. 
This tree has survived many generations, is still vigorous, and 
is beUeved to have the miraculous power of healing the sick, 
making the lame walk, and the blind see. 



38 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

It is true that not all of the devout pilgrims who spread their 
garments on its branches are relieved of their infirmities, but this 
fact does not injure the reputation of the ''Great Physician." 
Only one in many thousands of the devout Catholics who visit 
the shrines of Lourdes claims to be benefited. This does not 
prevent an annual pilgrimage of several hundred thousand be- 
lievers to this sacred place, where, as they believe, the Holy 
Virgin appeared in 1858 to the shepherd girl, Bernadette Soubi- 
rous. If the most enlightened people of this enlightened age 
have such faith in holy places, who can deny to the poor Arab 
the solace of a like superstition? 

The Island of Roda is in the form of an elongated eUipse, two 
miles long by nearly a half mile broad in its centre. It is sur- 
rounded by a high wall and was once fortified. It was here that 
the Copts took refuge on losing the fortress of Babylon with 
which it was connected by a bridge of boats. After this retreat 
they opened negotiations with the victorious Amru and finally 
capitulated. They were humanely treated and were allowed to 
retain their property. In fact, many of them welcomed the fol- 
lowers of the Prophet as a means of relief from their Byzantine 
oppressors. 

The island was formerly a summer resort, on account of its 
cool breezes, for the families of a few Cairene Pashas who owned 
the property. It is covered with beautiful gardens replete with 
tropical trees and plants, among which are the orange, the lemon, 
the banana, the henna, and, towering high above them, the date- 
palm. Henna is a shrub, from the leaves of which is made a 
paste long used by the Egyptians in dyeing their nails and the 
palms of their hands. 

The Nilometer is at the upper end of the island. Crossing from 
the mainland in a small boat, I mounted a long flight of stone 
steps to the top of the wall and entered a garden whose walks 
were paved with small stones in ornamental designs. After a 



Mysteries of the Nile 39 

short stroll among the shrubs and flowers, I was conducted by 
the custodian to the mysterious measurer of the rise and fall of 
the Nile. But what can there be of mystery in a simple device 
for determining the depth of water? It is only a large rectangular 
well with cut-stone walls, each of its sides measuring about five 
yards. In the centre is an octagonal column on which are Kufic 
inscriptions. A passage leads from its bottom to the river. It 
is true that very few, even among the most learned Arabic 
scholars, can read the Kufic. The only person I found in Egypt 
who could read the inscriptions on my Kufic coins was an Eng- 
lishman, who had devoted many years to the study of early 
Mohammedan coinage. But the mystery is not in the inscrip- 
tions on the column and the sides of the well, many of which 
are only quotations from the Koran. Strange as it may seem 
there are few people in Cairo who know or can ascertain the 
exact rise of the river. 

The unprecedented low Nile of 1877 gave just grounds for 
fears of the most serious consequences, the highest point attained 
being only seventeen pics and three karets. According to the 
official statements for the fifty-two preceding years, which was 
as far back as they could be obtained, this was three feet and 
three inches less than that of the lowest rise during that period, 
and nearly ten feet lower than the medium rise. 

It was estimated by competent judges that five hundred and 
fifty thousand acres of land, one-fourth of all Upper Egypt, could 
not be irrigated, and, consequently, must remain uncultivated. 
I had been informed that the official statements did not give 
correct measurements. Wishing to make a correct report to 
Mr. Evarts, then Secretary of State, of so important an event, I 
undertook to ascertain the exact facts. 

I first applied to General Stone, who, as chief of the staff of 
the Khedive, was at the head of the military department at 
Cairo and had kept a record of the rise and fall of the Nile for 



40 F'gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

a number of years, taking his figures from the statements which 
were published in the daily official paper. He had had prepared 
for reference in military affairs altitudinal charts, based on the 
data thus obtained, which showed the heights of the water during 
each month for a number of years. I found that he knew noth- 
ing of the measurement, except that the Nile-pic was about 
twenty-one inches, and he supposed that all the statements 
given were based upon these figures. 

I next applied ofhcially to the Governor of Cairo to whose juris- 
diction the Nilometer belonged. He replied that, personally, 
he had no knowledge of the manner of taking the measurements 
of the rise of the river, nor of the exact length of the Nile-pic; 
that these were secrets known only to the family having charge 
of the Nilometer. In a conversation with Cherif Pasha, then 
Minister of Foreign Affairs, I found that he was equally ignorant 
upon the subject. 

The Nilometer of the Island of Roda was first constructed, 
according to some writers, a. d. 716, according to others, nearly 
a century later. The present system of measurement may be 
of a much earlier period. It has been long transmitted from 
father to son or to the lawful successor in the family which, by 
hereditary right, is charged with the duty of measuring the rise 
and fall of the river. Each sheik on assuming these duties is 
sworn to secrecy. 

After much inquiry and search, my interpreter found an old 
Arabic book, containing a statement of the facts, which I after- 
wards verified. The book was published a hundred years ago, 
soon after the French scientific expedition to Egypt which first 
discovered the fraud that was being practiced upon the people. 

Theoretically, land which cannot be irrigated by the natural 
overflow of the Nile, or by means of the canals at the time of the 
highest waters, is not taxed. But the decision as to what land 
is taxable is not left to the taxpayer nor to the lower local au- j 



Mysteries of the Nile 41 

thorities. The question is determined by the ofRcial statements 
of the rise of the river. In cases of partial or insufficient over- 
flow, the proportionate amount of the tax is fixed in the same 
manner. 

During the reign of the Pharaohs, there was a Nilometer at 
Memphis, and others at different points on the river. The regis- 
ters kept of the rise of the Nile were always factors in determining 
the amount of taxes at that period, as in modern times. The 
priests then formed the educated class, were supposed to be the 
depositaries of all knowledge, and were often more powerful 
than the king. They kept the Nile-records and decreed the 
amount of taxes to which the king was entitled. That he and 
the priests counselled together and took into consideration the 
necessities of the exchequer is highly probable, but the motives 
for secrecy can easily be seen. If an Arab should be admitted 
to a view of the Nilometer, he would be no wiser for what he saw. 
If anyone capable of reading the record, except an authorized 
custodian, is allowed to do so, even now, it is an innovation of 
recent date. 

The facts, as I ascertained them, are, that a Nile-pic is a meas- 
ure of twenty-one and one-fourth inches; that the zero of the 
Nilometer is seven pics below the mean low- water mark; that in 
giving the height of the waters from zero to and including the 
sixteenth pic, the measure of the pic is twenty-one and one- 
fourth inches ; that from this point to the twenty-second pic, in- 
clusive, the measure of the pic is just half of this amount, ten and 
five-eighths inches, and, above this point, again twenty-one and 
one-fourth inches. A karet is the twenty-fourth part of a pic, 
whether the pic be short or long. After having deducted from 
the published statements of the height of the Nile the seven pics 
that are below mean low-water mark, and reduced the balance 
to inches according to the foregoing rule, it is still necessary to 
deduct seven inches to obtain the real rise of the river. 



42 Egypt and its Betrayal 

One explanation, or defense, of this system is, that when the 
Nile has risen at Cairo to sixteen pics, which is nine pics above 
the mean low-water mark, the people become anxious concern- 
ing the necessary additional rise. To quiet their fears, a half 
pic is counted as a whole, thus giving an apparent rapid increase. 
When the point of twenty-three pics is reached, there is the 
amount of water necessary for an abundant harvest. If the 
river continues to rise, there is fear of too much water, of the 
breaking of the dikes and the consequent damage, and, there- 
fore, the full pic of twenty-one and a fourth inches is again used. 
This is in accordance with the common habit of the people of 
saying to you whatever they believe will best suit your wishes. 

The real original reason for the practice of varying the pic 
was that relating to taxes, and the secret continuance of this 
practice and the mystery with which the whole subject was 
surrounded, so far as the mass of the taxpayers was concerned, 
could have had no other object. To understand how such a 
state of ignorance can exist, on a subject so vital to the interest 
of everyone, it is necessary to remember that very few of the 
people can read or write; that in an autocratic government, 
those who can read and write seldom take any interest in, or 
in any way meddle with matters that are supposed to be the 
special prerogatives of the sovereign, or of those he places in 
authority. 

The Nile-pic is an obsolete measure and should you ask every 
educated man in Egypt what measure it represented, not one 
in two thousand could tell you, though they are constantly 
talking about the number of pics of the rise and fall of the river. 
They only know that what is published as twenty-three pics is 
necessary for abundant crops, and the rise most to be desired. 

The rise in 1877 was, in reality, only about five feet below the 
mean rise, and twenty inches below the lowest rise for the fifty- 
two preceding years. The year of the next lowest rise during 




Valley of the Upper Nile at Time of Low Water, Showing a 
Traveler's Dhahabiyeh and the Shadufs along the Banks. 



i 



Mysteries of the Nile 43 

that time was 1833. The disastrous results of the low rise of 1877 
show the inestimable importance of a normal rise of the river. 

Herodotus, in speaking of the Nile, says: ''Unless the river 
rises sixteen cubits or fifteen, at least, it does not overflow the 
country." ^ He has reference to the measurements made at 
Memphis, ten miles above the Island of Roda. 

Five and six hundred years later, in the time of the Roman 
reign in Egypt, the same height was required. Among numerous 
other designs on Egyptian coins of that period, that of Nilus, 
the God of the Nile, is very frequent. He is represented as lying 
on the ground and holding a cornucopia, or a branch of a vine. 
Near by there is generally a crocodile or a hippopotamus. These 
coins, when struck in a year in which the Nile reached sixteen 
cubits, had, in addition to their other usual characters, the 
Greek letters IS, representing sixteen, showing that it was a 
year of abundance. It is probable that the measurement then 
commenced at mean low-water mark, and that the ell was an 
equivalent of the present Nile-pic. If so, the height of water 
required to flood the Delta is about the same as formerly. 

1 Her. II, 13. 



44 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER V 

FASTS AND THE MECCA PILGRIMAGE 

No scenes in Cairo are more interesting to the stranger than 
those connected with the annual pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina 
— the departure of the caravan, its return and the subsequent 
festivities, formerly ending with the Dosseh. The holy month 
of Ramadan immediately precedes that in which the departure 
of the pilgrims takes place and is most opportune for their prepa- 
ration for this sacred duty. Ramadan is the ninth month of 
the Moslem year, always has thirty days and is devoted by 
Mohammedans to fasting. 

However lax the Moslem may be in obeying the other cardinal 
precepts of his reUgion, he is very rigid in the observance of the 
prescribed fasts. He may cease to give alms, neglect to make 
his pilgrimage or to wage war against imbelievers, and not always 
remember to repeat in their fixed time his five daily prayers; 
but he will strictly observe the fasts of Ramadan. He believes 
that on the night of the 27th of this month the Koran was sent 
down to Mohammed. The gates of heaven are that day opened. 
God especially devotes Himself during this month to listening 
to the prayers of the penitent and granting them pardon for 
their sins. This is the month in which God made His '' revelation 
to Abraham," delivered the ''laws to Moses" and revealed the 
''Gospel of Christ." 

The Moslem year consists of twelve lunar months of three 
hundred and fifty-four days, with three leap years in thirty, 



1 



The Mecca Pilgrimage 45 

each adding one day. Consequently, any fixed Moslem date 
will occur, according to our calendar, ten to twelve, generally 
eleven, days earlier each year than the next preceding year, the 
date making the circuit of the year three times in a century. 

The Coptic year is different from the Moslem. The Julian 
year, still used by the Greeks, commences on our 12th day of 
January. As if this did not already complicate sufficiently the 
question of dates in Egypt, the Government, at the time of the 
institution of the Mixed Tribunals (1875), adopted the Gregorian 
calendar. This is used only by the Department of Finance, 
the Mixed Tribunals and the Europeans. All of these systems 
are used by different individuals, according to their nationality 
or religion. 

The Moslem day begins at sunset, and the month with the 
new moon. To fix the date of the commencement of Ramadan, 
the moon must actually have been seen, and the fact of its ap- 
pearance a little after sunset must have been judicially deter- 
mined by the Kadi. This is not difficult in the ever clear at- 
mosphere of Cairo. Men are sent out upon the high hills just 
beyond the Citadel. Having obtained a view of the expected 
crescent above the Lybian mountains, they return. Their evi- 
dence is reduced to writing and a decision is made and announced 
to the numerous dignitaries who assemble on this occasion at 
the house of the Kadi. Cannon are immediately fired from the 
Citadel and processions are formed which, escorted by bands 
of music, march through the city proclaiming that the month of 
fasting has commenced. At the dawn of the next day, the dis- 
trict ''messenger of the morning" announces the fast, and, just 
as the sun begins to appear, the cry is heard from the minarets 
of all the mosques of Cairo, ''Hearken, the fast has begun!" 

Mohammedan fasting consists in abstaining from food, drink 
and tobacco, between sunrise and sunset, during the period of 
the fast. No one is exempt from its strict observance except 



46 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

soldiers in battle and the sick. By reason of the short Egyptian 
winters, Ramadan falls for many years in succession in the warm 
season. The abstinence from food and drink during the long, 
hot, dry and dusty days of summer for an entire month is no 
inconsiderable sacrifice. It often produces upon the physical 
condition of the people an effect, which is marked by an indis- 
position to labor, peevishness and ill-humor, frequently resulting 
in misdemeanors. 

The fasting of the day is, in a measure, compensated by the 
feasting of the night. It is sometimes painful to see the people 
toward the close of a long, hot day watching the slowly descend- 
ing sun. As the weary hours are about to end they listen in 
breathless silence for the report of the cannon fired from the 
Citadel, announcing that the day's fast has ended. Then cigar- 
ettes are quickly lighted, dates and other fruits are ready, and 
the water-bearer is in great demand. Thirst is the first appetite 
to be appeased. The laborer drops his rude tools, the coachman 
jumps from his carriage and the cameleer from his camel, and 
each waits with nervous impatience his turn to seize a cup of the 
sacred water of the Nile. Then comes the feasting in which each 
person indulges according to his means. 

Other branches of business are dull or suspended during 
Ramadan, but that of the caf^s and restaurants is then at its 
height. There are bright illuminations, native or European 
music, song and story-telling until an hour before dawn, when 
the cry from the minarets, ''Arise and prepare for the fast!" is 
heard. Then comes the early morning meal, the principal one 
during Ramadan, wholly contrary to the habits of the Orient, 
where usually but little and very light food is taken in the morn- 
ing. 

It is a long thirty days, but the cannon at the Citadel finally 
announce the end. On the morrow (the first day of Shawwal, 
the tenth month), the three days' festival known as the Little 



The Mecca Pilgrimage 47 

Beiram commences. It is a general time of visits, receptions, 
rejoicing, making presents to servants and children and putting 
on new clothes. 

The Khedive gives a reception, beginning at six o'clock in the 
morning, when the officers of the army are received. Afterwards 
come the various classes in a prearranged order, heads of de- 
partments, high officials, sheiks of religious orders, judges of 
native courts, representative merchants, notable civilians and 
dignitaries of all classes, judges of the Mixed Tribunals, and 
lastly, at eleven o'clock, the diplomatic representatives. The 
last-named are the only visitors honored by being seated. They 
are served with cofTee, smoke the shibuk, and have a short con- 
versation with his Highness in which they present and receive 
congratulations. 

Immediately after this festival, in which religious rites have 
not been neglected, preparations commence for the departure 
of the pilgrim-caravan, which takes place on the twenty-third 
of the month. Each year, the caravan carries a new Kisweh, 
usually called ^Hhe carpet," a rich covering for the outer wall 
of the Kaaba. The Kaaba is a small building situate in the 
interior of the temple, or mosque, at Mecca, containing the sacred 
black stone. The Kisweh is of black brocade, wrought with 
gold, and covered with inscriptions from the Koran. It is made 
at Cairo, and some idea of its magnificence may be formed from 
the fact that its cost to the Egyptian Government is $23,000. 
The annual expense of the pilgrimage to the Government is 
over $330,000, a sum nearly double that appropriated for schools 
under European control. 

The Kisweh is first made in small pieces, which, soon after 
the Little Beiram, are taken to the mosque of Hasanen and there 
sewn together. When the body of the Kisweh has been com- 
pleted, a broad, rich border and a veil or portiere for the door of 
the Kaaba are attached. The caravan also takes another orna- 



48 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

merited cloth to serve as a covering for the tomb of Abraham, 
and still another of green material wrought with gold and various 
colored silks for the inside of the Kaaba. 

A covering for the tomb of Mohammed, at Medina, is brought 
by the caravan that is organized at Damascus. A third caravan 
comes from Bagdad. The three leave their respective cities at 
about the same time, enter the great Arabian desert, after a few 
days' travel, and, continuing southward, arrive at Mecca in 
about forty days. 

There is little difference in the general character of the scenes 
and ceremonies each year on the departure of the pilgrim-caravan 
from Cairo. The foreign representatives receive official invi- 
tations to be present. I will write only of what I saw on one 
occasion. 

The invited guests arrived early in the morning at the Place 
Mohammed Ali near the Citadel, whence the caravan takes its 
departure. Bodies of different classes of troops were already 
assembled there and, in the vicinity, various religious organiza- 
tions were being formed into a procession. A gorgeous tent of 
red velvet and gold had been erected for the Khedive or his 
representative, and for the ministers, kadi, mufti and other 
military, civil and religious dignitaries. His Highness, Tewfik | 
Pasha, then Crown Prince, represented the Khedive. 

The Khedive, Ismail Pasha, did not attend pubHc religious 
ceremonies, but was represented by his son Tewfik, who was 
regarded by the faithful as the more devout Moslem. Tewfik, 
after he became Khedive, continued to be present on all occa- 
sions of this character. When his Highness arrived, he was 
seated in the center of the tent, surrounded by the officials and 
invited guests. Soon afterwards, that section of the procession 
in which the Mahmal was carried advanced, and the camel carry- 
ing it was halted in front of the Khedivial tent. His Highness 
stepped forth, took the camel by the halter and handed the halter 



The Mecca Pilgrimage 49 

to the sheik who was to be the leader of the pilgrims. By this 
act, he entrusted him with the caravan and gave him authority 
over all who accompanied it. 

The Mahmal is a magnificent litter with a highly ornamental 
pyramidal top. It is covered with cloth wrought in gold and 
two copies of the Koran are suspended from it, one on either side. 
This litter is now carried only as an emblem of royalty, but it, 
or the litter it represents, was formerly designed for the wives of 
the Khalifs, who made the pilgrimage. It is said that the Mahmal 
had its origin in the time of the beautiful and wise Sultana, 
Shegeret ed-Durr, who made the pilgrimage (a. d. 1250) in a 
magnificent litter carried between two camels. It has accom- 
panied the pilgrims annually to Mecca for centuries and is re- 
garded as sacred by the simple devotees of Islam, who eagerly 
force their way through the throng to touch it and thereby be 
blessed. The camel that bears it is richly decorated, leads the 
caravan when on the desert, and becomes to such an extent holy 
that it is not customary to use him afterwards for any other 
purpose, though he continues to carry the Mahmal on the pil- 
grimages as long as he is able. 

Near the Mahmal followed the grotesque sheik of the camels, 
who every year accompanies the pilgrims. He was a burly, 
almost herculean Arab, with long, matted hair and naked down 
to the loins. Mounted on his camel, he swayed backwards and 
forwards, his eyes closed, as if in religious ecstasy. Then followed 
pilgrims mounted on camels (in some instances whole families), 
with their baggage, tents, and other articles necessary for the 
desert journey. The camels were dressed in gaudy trappings and 
decorated with palm-branches, and, if their long, coarse hair 
had become too much whitened by the sun, its natural tawny 
color was restored by a free use of henna. 

The main part of the procession, which was to honor the pil- 
grims by escorting them out of the city, had been the first formed, 



50 Egypt and its Betrayal 

and was well in advance, pushing its way through the narrow 
streets of the native part of the town toward Bab en-Nasr/ the 
gate of exit, two miles distant. I did not wait to see the sheik of 
the cats, who is generally near the rear. He goes half naked like 
the sheik of the camels, and is quite as rough and grotesque in 
appearance. Mounted on his high, humpbacked animal, he is 
surrounded with baskets filled with tribes of cats, which thus 
make the sacred pilgrimage. They look out upon the multitude, 
receiving its applause, fully realizing and enjoying, apparently, 
the distinction which places them above the rest of the feline 
race. 

All business had been suspended for the day. Shops, stalls and 
stores remained closed and the many thousands who had been 
on the streets in their best attire, since early morning, were now 
massed along the line of the route of the pilgrims, even the women 
mingling in the crowds. Our seis, preceding us, cleared the way 
for our carriage and we entered and continued for some distance 
in the current of this stream of humanity. 

This native part of Cairo, with its narrow streets and quaint 
arabesque architecture, was always attractive, but at no other 
time was it so interesting and picturesque as when it donned its 
holiday dress for the pilgrim procession. Its buildings were 
gorgeously decorated. Besides the traditional palm-branches, 
there were flags, streamers and banners of various colors and 
devices in superabundance. The roofs and windows were filled 
with throngs of both sexes and of all classes and ages eager to 
obtain a view of the passing pageant. The scene on either side, 
to us, as we passed, was a panorama of a mass of joyous, festive, 
enraptured human faces, surrounded with and embedded in the 
deep, rich colors of Oriental costumes, drapery and bunting. 

Leaving the route of the pilgrims, we passed to a side street 
and hurried on to the outer gate in order to obtain a view of that 

^ Gate of Victory. 



The Mecca Pilgrimage 51 

part of the procession which had preceded us. Companies of 
soldiers, infantry and cavalry had already passed, and were 
moving toward a desert camping ground near by. Each section 
of the procession was preceded by a native band of music, some 
of the bands being mounted on camels. There were court offi- 
cials, military, civil and religious, other high dignitaries, with 
rich uniforms, decorations and abundance of gold lace. Many 
of them were accompanied by their guards or kavasses in equally 
showy dress. There were companies of dervishes, each order with 
a different colored turban (blue, green, white and red) and with 
fiags and banners to be equalled in richness of decoration only 
in the Orient. Some, engaged in their peculiar form of worship, 
were saying their prayers and whirling and throwing themselves 
into a religious frenzy. Others were eating serpents, swallowing 
pieces of broken glass and walking on the sharp edges of swords. 
Still others had spikes passing through their cheeks from one side 
of the face to the other. And all these things, it should be re- 
membered, were done under the guise of rehgion and with a pre- 
tense of being miraculously preserved from harm. 

There were half-naked swordsmen, civic orders or guilds with 
various devices, people on horses and donkeys, desert Arabs 
on camels with spears, shields and all their wild fanciful cos- 
tumes and trappings, interspersed with bodies of regular troops. 
Such were some of the features of the long train of believers in 
the Prophet which required more than two hours for its passage 
through Bab en-Nasr. 

Those who were to make the pilgrimage and various orders 
of dervishes went into camp in the desert just outside of the city. 
Here, two or three days were spent in further preparations and 
religious festivities. The Whirling, Dancing and Howling der- 
vishes continued nightly their pecuUar devotions. They thus 
aroused a religious frenzy which stimulated and encouraged 
those who were about to undertake, in fulfilment of a pious duty 



5 2 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

for which no sacrifice is too great for the true Moslem, the long 
and perilous journey to the Holy City. And this pilgrimage is a 
real sacrifice. Exposed to the contagious diseases that fre- 
quently prevail at Mecca and to the privations of ninety days on 
the deserts, many of the pilgrims fail to return. Mecca and the 
sands of the deserts along the routes thereto are strewed with 
the bones and ashes of generations of the faithful. 

The first day's journey is to the Birket el-Hagg — Lake of the 
Pilgrims — about ten miles distant. The dervishes accompany 
the caravan to this place, where there is one more night of devo- 
tion. Then come the farewells to families and friends and the 
departure. 

On leaving Cairo, going east, one immediately enters and 
continues in the desert. The Derb el-Hagg — ^Route of the Pil- 
grims — crosses the Suez Canal near the ruins of the ^^ ancient 
Arsinoe," ten miles north of Suez, and thence continues a little 
south of east across the Sinai peninsula to the head of the Gulf 
of Akabah. It then runs near the coast of the gulf and of the 
Red Sea, until it reaches Mecca. The whole distance traveled 
is a continuous waste of rocky, sandy deserts, with only rare, 
small, verdant spots. At Mecca, the three caravans meet the 
great mass of the pilgrims who have journeyed, by way of the 
Red Sea, from Persia, India, Turkey, and the northern states 
of Africa, including Egypt, and have landed at Jeddah, two 
short days' journey from the Holy City. The whole number 
assembled is often a hundred thousand. 

After the performance at Mecca of the customary religious 
rites, the splendor of which is said to be unsurpassed, the pil- 
grimage is continued eastward, six hours, to Mount Arafat. 
Here, according to Mohammedan tradition, Abraham prepared 
for the sacrifice of his son, not Isaac, but Ishmael, whom they 
regard as the father of the Arabic race. The pilgrims ascend 
the mountain, or hill, as it really is, and remain there during 



The Mecca Pilgrimage 53 

the night. The next day, the tenth of the twelfth month, they 
sacrifice a lamb in commemoration of the sacrifice made by the 
prophet, Ibrahim,^ as they term him, in obedience to the com- 
mand of God. That night, at the foot of Arafat there is a great 
slaughter of lambs, and feasting is universal throughout the 
Moslem world. Those who are unable to procure a lamb or the 
meat of some pure animal are supplied by their more fortunate 
neighbors.^ It is the Id el-Kebir, the Kurban Beiram, the time 
of giving alms to the poor and gratuities to servants, of providing 
new garments for children, of official and private receptions, of 
congratulations and general feasting and rejoicing — in a word, 
for festive observances similar to those at the close of Ramadan. 

The caravan occupies sixty days in returning. It travels 
slowly, going by Medina to visit the tomb of Mohammed, and 
passes a considerable time in quarantine near Suez. It arrives 
in the vicinity of Cairo, the last of Safar, the second month of 
the new year. 

The pilgrims are met at some distance from the city by rela- 
tives, friends and dervishes with music and loud demonstra- 
tions of joy. But, mingled with the din of kettle-drums and 
other harsh native instruments of music, and the firing of guns, 
are to be heard the agonizing cries and lamentations of wives 
and children, who, coming out to welcome husband and father, 
find only his vacant place in the procession. After remaining 
encamped outside the city until the arrival of the date for the 
closing ceremonies, the caravan enters the town with the same 
pomp and display with which it departed. 

The Kisweh and the other coverings which have been replaced 
by new ones are brought back, cut into the original pieces of 

^ It was this prophet who, according to Moslem belief, first established the 
true religion. 

^ More than fifty thousand sheep are slaughtered at Mecca for this festival, 
which continues three days. 



54 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

which they were formed and given to the mosques and reUgious 
sheiks as holy relics. The entrance into the city is made at the 
beginning of the religious festivities that are held in honor of 
the birth of Mohammed, the second day of Rabi el-Awwel, the 
third month of the Moslem year. There is, on this occasion, a 
great assemblage of different religious organizations, mostly 
dervishes, from various parts of Egypt. Cairo again puts on its 
festive, picturesque garb. The celebration continues until the 
eleventh of the month, ending, at the time of which I am writing, 
with the Dosseh. 

The streets were filled with natives in their gayest costumes, 
with a sparse sprinkling of European residents and travelers. 
There were long lines of booths with candy-toys, bread, cakes, 
coffee, stalks of sugar-cane, gourds, melons and other fruits and 
edibles of the country. Native amusements abounded; music 
and the story-teller (at the coffee-booth), the swing, the see-saw, 
the Egyptian Punch and Judy, the merry-go-round. Companies 
of soldiers and frequent processions of dervishes with their 
music, gay flags and banners were passing. 

After the heat of the day came the soft, dry, agreeable atmos- 
sphere of the evening. Apparently everyone was on the streets, 
and the festive scenes were at the height of their gayety. The 
booths were brilliantly, often fantastically, illuminated. Min- 
strels and bands of music were heard at every turn. The dervish 
processions carried colored lamps. Harem carriages passed rap- 
idly, preceded by flashing torches borne by torch-bearers, their 
outrunners loudly crying, ''Clear the way!" 

A spacious field had been appropriated for an encampment 
in which each religious order had its large and gorgeous tent, f 
Throughout the day and night, dense masses of people were 
wandering over the grounds. The Dancing or Whirling der- 
vishes and those popularly known as the ''Howlers" continued 
incessantly their accustomed devotions, edifying the Mussul- 



The Mecca Pilgrimage 55 

man and amusing the Christian or arousing in him feelings of 
pity. 

During the last three nights, there were extensive fireworks, 
an artifice in which the Arabs excel. The animation of the mov- 
ing masses, the brightly lighted tents with their canvas Ufted 
on one side, exposing the dervishes in all their rhythmic move- 
ments, the festoons of light made by lamps suspended to ropes 
of various lengths and heights, each order having its own color, 
combined with the display of Roman candles, rockets and other 
beautiful or fantastic fireworks to produce a magnificent spec- 
tacle. All classes were present. The Crown Prince was in his 
tent, surrounded with high officials and male members of his 
family. Numerous carriages passed containing richly dressed, 
thinly veiled inmates of the harems of the Khedive and pashas 
or European residents. Peasants mingled with the laborers and 
artisans of the town, the rich with the poor. The ubiquitous 
traveler appeared on his donkey, afoot, or in his carriage, accord- 
ing to his tastes or the size of his purse. 

From the beginning to the end of this long celebration of the 
birthday of the Prophet, there seemed to be no decrease of en- 
thusiasm. There was to be a fmal act, however, changing the 
long and pleasing drama into a disgraceful, sickening tragedy, 
and leaving a lasting impression both upon the Moslem and the 
Christian, but for very different reasons. 



56 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER VI 



THE DOSSEH AND DERVISHES 



The word Dosseh, literally translated, means "a stepping," 
or "treading upon," and conveys, in its original language, the 
idea of crushing under the feet. The ceremony consists of a 
sheik of the Saadiyeh dervishes riding, on horseback, over a 
large number of devotees. These prostrate themselves upon the 
ground, lying upon their faces, packed closely together. 

In the forenoon of the eleventh of the month, the Rifa'i der- 
vishes, of which the Saadiyeh is one of the orders, assembled 
near the mosque of Hasanen. Others of the more fanatical 
dervishes joined them, and a procession of several thousand 
was formed. The Sheik of the Saadiyeh, having passed the night 
in fasting and religious ceremonies in preparation for the miracle 
of the day, came to this mosque for his midday prayer. When it 
was finished, he mounted a medium-sized stallion, joined the 
procession in the rear and rode with it to the encampment, 
where, since ten o'clock, an immense mass of people, fifty thou- 
sand or more, had been anxiously awaiting their coming. 

On one side of the field, to the left of the entrance, was a long 
row of tents. The most distant tent was that of the Sheik of 
the reUgious orders taking part in the Dosseh, the next, that of 
the Khedive, was occupied by his Highness Tewfik Pasha and 
his friends; the third, by prominent Europeans; and the others, 
by dervishes. A space about thirty feet wide in front of these 
tents was kept open for the entrance of the procession. Soldiers 



The Dosseh and Dervishes 57 

were stationed in front of the tents to keep back the pressing 
crowds. 

Those who had been selected or had volunteered as martyrs 
for the occasion marched down the open space in front of the 
tents accompanied by an equal number of dervishes, so that each 
man had his attendant. When the head of the column had 
arrived in front of the tent of the Sheik of the dervishes, it 
halted, and the men along the Hne, about four hundred in all, 
prostrated themselves upon the ground at a right angle to their 
line of march with their heads toward the tents. They were 
packed as closely together as possible. 

They were dressed in the ordinary manner of the poorest 
classes and were undoubtedly from the lowest and most fanatical 
elements of the people. They wore only loose garments, fastened 
at the waist with a sash or cord, their feet and limbs being bare. 
The attendant remained sitting at the head of each man during 
the passage of the horse. 

The placing of the men and the other preliminary arrange- 
ments occupied from half to three-quarters of an hour after the 
arrival of the procession. During this time the men were lying 
on their faces and the pressing masses of people, each eager for 
a place in the front rank, were kept back by the soldiers. I was 
in the tent next to that occupied by the Crown Prince and had 
a good opportunity to observe what took place. Opposite, across 
the line, were a large number of carriages, those of the harems 
in the front rank, and, back of them, those of strangers and 
foreign residents who were obliged to stand on the carriage 
seats to see what was happening. Among and beyond the latter 
was a seething mass of people who could not approach, and could 
only obtain a view of the Sheik, above the heads of those in 
front, as he rode down the line. 

The bodies of the deluded devotees, when arranged and packed, 
formed a kind of corduroy road for the triumphal march of the 



58 EgyP^ ^^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

holy Sheik, so holy that the Prophet miraculously protected 
from harm those who prostrated themselves to be trampled 
upon by his horse. If perchance it became known that some one 
had been harmed, it was attributed to want of faith. 

At a certain signal, the attendants along the Une and the 
thousands of faithful among the people commenced crying, 
^* Allah" (God), ^^Allah-la-la-la-la-lah-lah," emphasizing and 
prolonging the last syllable of the word so that nothing else 
could be heard. At the other end of the line, two men side by 
side were seen walking on the bodies, carrying green ^ flags, the 
staffs of which were surmounted by spear heads. 

Close behind followed the Sheik, mounted on a horse led by 
two men. They came hurriedly down the line, amid the cries of 
'^ Allah-la-la-la," ^' Allah-la-la-la," which gradually deepened 
and, mingling with the excited clamor of the great multitude, 
became a continuous, deafening roar unlike any sounds to be 
heard except among the dervishes. The Sheik was apparently 
a large man. He wore a green turban and a brownish-yellow 
burnoose fastened at the waist by a sash. His eyes were closed 
and he swayed one way and another, yielding to the motion of 
the horse, according to the usual manner of those in a state of 
religious ecstasy. Two men walked near him, one on either side, 
with their hands upon his robes to prevent him from falling. 

The men on the ground made no movement. Their faith 
was strengthened by the continued invocation of Allah, whose 
Prophet was to protect them and thus show His power to all un- 
behevers. As the horse moved along the line, there was a general 
rush and the crowd quickly closed in behind him the moment he 
had passed. Whether this was prearranged by the managers, or 
whether it was because the people could no longer be restrained, 
I do not know. The result was to prevent the obtaining of much 
information as to what had taken place. 

^ Green is the color of the order of the Saadiyeh. 



The Dosseh and Dervishes 59 

The space in front of our tent had been kept clear of people. 
As the horse approached, I obtained a position next to the at- 
tendants seated at the heads of the men. Horses in the East are 
used mostly under the saddle and this one, according to custom, 
had been taught to amble. He was shod in the Oriental style, 
with a flat circular shoe covering the whole lower surface of the 
hoof. He passed quickly with a shuffling, nervous, unsteady 
gait, between a walk and a pace, his feet sometimes sliding down 
between the prostrate men, sometimes striking with much force 
directly upon their bodies and at other times upon their limbs. 
As the people closed in behind him, the men were hurriedly 
assisted to their feet by their attendants or carried away by 
them to the dervish tents near by. In less than a minute, not 
a person was to be seen lying on the ground, and the facts as to 
injuries were as far as possible concealed. 

On two occasions I forced myself quickly, but with much 
difficulty, into the crowd immediately after the passage of the 
horse. On the first occasion I saw a young man arise apparently 
uninjured and laughing as if it had been a play. Another man, 
however, was carried away in a seemingly helpless state with 
blood running from his nose and mouth. In the crowding and 
scrambling, this was all the information I could obtain. On the 
second occasion I saw some getting up unhurt; but one man was 
unable to conceal his agony, caused by some wound, and another 
was carried away without the power of moving his limbs, ap- 
parently almost lifeless. I thought at the time that his spinal 
column had been dislocated or otherwise injured, but the rapidity 
with which all these people were moved away left little oppor- 
tunity for observation. 

By some, it was boldly maintained that no one was injured, 
that they were all miraculously protected by the Prophet. This 
was undoubtedly the belief of the greater part of the Moslem 
population. By others, it was affirmed that there was a large 



6o -^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

number wounded each year, and among them some whose in- 
juries were fatal. A local paper, published by Europeans, 
claimed that in 1879, when the number of believers who pros- 
trated themselves was greater than usual, there were three hun- 
dred and forty wounded. This was undoubtedly a random and 
much exaggerated statement. Even an approximate number 
of those injured could not have been obtained. 

The bodies were packed so closely together that a single body 
occupied but a small space and the steps of the horse, in the 
manner he moved, were very long. I estimated, at the time, 
that he did not touch more than one in every three or four 
persons. In any event, the results were sufficiently horrible and 
sickening to condemn the Dosseh and to class it among the most 
barbarous relics of religious superstition that have been be- 
queathed to this generation. That it should have survived until 
the last quarter of the nineteenth century is a remarkable com- 
mentary upon human nature, as well as upon the fanaticism still 
existing in the hirnian family. 

Soon after one of these scenes, wishing to ascertain the real 
belief of the Moslems, I questioned Hassan, than whom there 
was no truer believer in the Prophet. He frankly informed me 
that no one was injured on these occasions, that it was a miracle, j 
that he would have no fear of throwing himself before the horse, 
since he would not be injured. I told him he was mistaken, and 
related to him what I had seen. He was somewhat startled, 
having great confidence in what I said, but I could see that his 
faith, though a Uttle weakened, was still strong. 

The next day Hassan asked to speak with me. He said that 
he had come to tell me that he had been to see a high sheik of 
his religion, in whom he had great confidence. The sheik had 
informed him that there were people injured at the Dosseh and 
sometimes killed, but that the Dosseh was no part of the Moham- 
medan religion. He had explained that the Dosseh was an old 



The Dosseh and Dervishes 6i 

practice of certain fanatical dervishes which disgraced their 
religion and had affirmed that he would be glad to have it, as 
well as many other practices of certain orders of the dervishes, 
discontinued. This was the opinion entertained by all the better 
classes, including the professors of el-Azhar, the great university 
of Cairo. This institution is the central point of Moslem educa- 
tion, and the fountain head whence flow the true doctrines of 
El-Islam to all parts of the Mohammedan world. This religion 
embraces more devotees than any other and its numbers are 
constantly increasing. 

Happily, the Dosseh now exists, at least in Cairo, only in his- 
tory. This marvelous city will henceforth have one less memor- 
able entertainment for the traveler. The lover of barbarous pub- 
lic spectacles must content himself with the bull fights of Spain. 

In February, 1880, I witnessed the last exhibition of the 
Dosseh. At the urgent request of the Khedive, the sheiks 
having control of these ceremonies discontinued them along with 
certain other practices, such as the public eating of snakes and 
glass, marching with needles and spikes apparently piercing the 
cheeks, the nose, the arms, and the flesh of various parts of the 
body and walking on the edges of sharp swords. These were 
mostly acts of jugglery, sometimes indecent, which had been 
up to this time common scenes in religious processions and had 
been considered by fanatical devotees as miracles. 

His Highness, Tewfik Pasha, then Khedive, and the members 
of his Ministry were certainly entitled to much credit for the 
suppression of these practices. The fact that the change was 
made without serious opposition was an indication of an advanc- 
ing moral sentiment. The Khedive had wished to abolish the 
Dosseh. His Ministers, the Ulema and the Sheik of Islam, how- 
ever, while all agreeing with him that it was no part of their re- 
ligion and was, in principle, contrary to the doctrines of the Koran, 
did not dare to take the responsibihty of so radical a measure. 



62 -^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

In the year 1880 several incidents occurred to aid the Khedive. 
During this year, Allah kindly removed to the Moslems' Paradise 
the fanatical Sheik el-Bekri, who was at the head of the der- 
vishes, and the sheik who rode the horse, both of whom were 
bitterly opposed to any interference with the old religious cus- 
toms. The old horse, also, which had long served to trample 
upon the devotees, became very sick a little before the time to 
celebrate the Prophet's birthday. The superstitious leaders 
interpreted these incidents as an augury in favor of the proposi- 
tion of the Khedive and, without further opposition, consented 
to the discontinuance of the ceremony. 

Nothing definite is known as to the origin of the Dosseh. 
While in Cairo, I heard an oral tradition to the effect that about 
the tenth century a religious sheik, on returning to Cairo from 
his Mecca pilgrimage, was kept outside the walls of the city for 
the alleged reason that he had not given any proofs of such piety, 
holiness and divine favor as to entitle him to the position he 
occupied. It was said: ^'If he is worthy of being such a religious 
sheik, let him give evidence of it." Irritated by these imputa- 
tions, he caused a large number of glass bottles to be placed close 
together on the ground, mounted his horse and rode over them 
without breaking one. 

Among the people present to witness this trial of the sheik's 
power were many women, who, in the enthusiasm inspired by 
the miracle they had witnessed, threw their children before him. 
He rode over these also without injuring them. The gates of 
the city were then opened, and, as he entered, the people threw 
themselves down before him and he rode over them. No one 
was harmed, and the same miracle was afterwards repeated each 
year, until the Dosseh became a recognized part of the religious 
ceremonies immediately following the return of the pilgrims from 
Mecca. 

It is believed by many, however, that the Dosseh was a con- 



The Dosseh and Dervishes 63 

tinuation or an imitation of some usage of a far earlier period, 
perhaps of Indian origin. Mohammedanism is a strange mixture 
of all religions known to Mohammed. In it, Judaism, Christi- 
anity and paganism are skilfully blended together, forming a 
system well adapted to the people among whom it was to be 
propagated, and the miraculous was one of its most essential 
elements. Pagan customs that were not forbidden by the Koran 
were continued. 

No religious leader could obtain great renown without the aid 
of a popular belief in his power to work miracles. Any ceremony 
of the character of the Dosseh, that was grounded in the religious 
habits of a people who became Mohammedans, would have 
been readily accepted and adopted by the fanatical devotees of 
the Prophet. 

Mohammedanism is better than the paganism it supplanted, 
and is still supplanting, and its adherents are no more super- 
stitious than large numbers of certain branches of the Christian 
church; but even in its greatest purity it has many elements of 
barbarism, and its manifestations of superstition are of a grosser 
character than those of the Christian religion. Its wonderful 
hold upon the people of the Orient is shown by the number and 
the unwavering faithfulness of its adherents. 

There is a fanatical element in all religions, and this is repre- 
sented among the Mohammedans by the dervishes, who number 
many thousands. They are the monks of the Orient, but only 
a small part of their numerous orders make religion their sole 
business. They are mostly married men, artisans, tradesmen and 
fellahin, who take part in religious ceremonies at stated times, 
generally on Friday, the Moslem Sunday, and during the great 
festivals. Some, however, are mendicants and make it their 
business to attend religious ceremonies and funerals. These are 
the performers and miracle workers in the processions. 

The religious exercises of the dervishes are called zikrs. They 



^4 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

are a continued rhythmic invocation of Allah, accompanied by 
some motion, the whole company present joining in both the 
invocation and motion. This is sometimes kept up for hours 
without change or rest, but generally not more than twenty-five 
or thirty minutes. The motion of some orders is whirling, and 
these are consequently called Wliirling or Dancing dervishes. 
They become very proficient in this exercise. They turn on the 
left foot and propel themselves by touching the floor with the 
right, making from fifty to sixty rotations in a minute with a 
graceful pose of the body, arms and hands, scarcely excelled by 
the best dancers. 

The motion of some orders is a movement of the head from 
right to left or up and down, in the form of a nod or bow. Some- 
times, there is a movement of the upper part of the body back- 
wards and forwards, to the full extent of its bending capacity. 
The head is brought forward and down to the knees, and thrown 
back until it nearly touches the lower part of the body. The 
whole company keep time in this motion, and shout in concert 
their prayers, in which the principal sounds are those of ''Allah- 
la-la-la." These dervishes and others whose zikrs are of a similar 
character are called by strangers the Howling dervishes. 

Some make their invocations sitting, and some reclining or 
lying on their breasts; but all continue their prayers in concert, 
in a fixed measure of time and with frequent cadences, and pro- 
longations of the ''la." Their eyes are closed, and they often 
reach such a state of religious ecstasy that they fall into con- 
vulsions. It must not be inferred that the dervishes are not 
sincere in their devotions. They are faithful believers in the 
Koran, genuine and devout disciples of the Prophet. 



A Journey to Mount Sinai 65 



CHAPTER VII 



A JOURNEY TO MOUNT SINAI 



The peninsula of Sinai is a part of the territory of Egypt. 
Only an occasional traveler visits the sacred mountains. The 
trip is ordinarily made on camels starting from Suez. For those 
who have no special official aid, this is the only practical route. 
The journey requires three weeks, sixteen days of the time being 
occupied in traversing the deserts. If the dragomen and camels 
are hired by the day, without limit as to time, several days more 
will probably be needed. 

Food must be taken for the whole trip — except bread, a poor 
quahty of which can be procured at the Sinai-convent. In case 
of necessity, rice, lentils and dates are sometimes furnished by 
the monks, but at the time of our visit nothing could be obtained 
but coarse bread. In the dry season, palatable water will be 
found only in two or three places on the route, and supplies must 
be taken from these points. To insure admission to the convent, 
letters from the monastery of the Sinaites at Cairo are required. 

Instead of taking the ordinary route, our party went by sea 
from Suez to Tor, one hundred and sixty miles, thence to Sinai 
by camels; an arrangement by which our desert travel was re- 
duced to eight days — going from and returning to the sea. We 
had letters from Cherif Pasha to the Governor of Suez, asking 
him to aid us in securing passages, and to the Governor of Tor, 
to procure camels for our party. Without these letters, it would 
have been difficult to procure either on reasonable terms, es- 



66 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

pecially the camels. The company consisted of General Loring, 
an ex-Confederate officer; the consular clerk, Mr. Edward A. 
VanDyke; the consular kavass, Hassan; a cook and a colored 
servant. We took two tents, beds, blankets, canned meats, 
fruits and necessary arms and personal effects with us by railway 
to Suez. 

When we left Cairo, we expected that passage to Tor would 
be obtained on a steamer that had been fitted out by the Govern- 
ment to transport Captain Burton and a company of laborers and 
soldiers to the "land of Midian," on the east coast of the Gulf of 
Akabah, in search of gold. The Captain had represented to the 
Khedive, that he had found gold in that country, on the route to 
Mecca, and had claimed that it was the real Ophir of the Bible. 
He had thus induced the Khedive to fit out for him an Argonautic 
expedition. This was one of the many cases in which his High- 
ness, Ismail Pasha, was imposed upon by Europeans. Specimens 
of iron pyrites and a little copper were the only results of this 
expensive expedition. 

There was a delay in the starting of the steamer, which made 
it necessary for us to obtain a boat for our excursion. After the 
usual long negotiations, inevitable in deaUng with Arabs, an 
arrangement was made for an open twenty-five ton sailing vessel. 
Two days would be required, it was claimed, to prepare for the 
voyage. We utilized a part of this time in making a visit to the 
Springs of Moses, Ain Musa, which are on the regular camel 
route to Sinai, not far from the sea, and about three hours distant 
from Suez. 

We were taken across the shallow waters and the Suez Canal 
in a small native boat, and thence by donkeys. After crossing 
the Canal, we were in Asia and on the border of a vast desert. 
East and south, there was an extended view of plains, hills and 
mountains of sand, gravel, earth and rock, without vegetation, 
and of a dull, monotonous yellow tint. It was the last of Novem- 



A Journey to Mount Sinai 67 

ber. The long, dry, hot summer had parched and burned up all 
vegetation, and a brisk north wind enveloped us in a continuous 
cloud of dust. 

On our right was the Red Sea, or more correctly speaking 
that arm of it which is known as the Gulf of Suez. It is only a 
few miles in width at this point, but deep, and as blue as the sky 
it reflects. Beyond it, rising from near the water line, are the 
mountains of Ataka, nearly three thousand feet in height, and 
wholly destitute of vegetation. On our left was only the desert, 
bordered by the mountains in the distance. 

The Springs of Moses consist of a number of small basins of 
brackish water, some on the surface of the ground, and others 
on the tops of mounds in the form of truncated cones. The 
largest of the springs forms a pool about fifteen feet across, and 
was surrounded, at the time of our visit, by a garden with a few 
palm- and acacia-trees, thus making a little oasis. These are 
the springs, according to tradition, the waters of which were 
made sweet by casting into them the branch of a tree shown to 
Moses by the Lord. 

There were several mud huts occupied by Arabs who irrigated 
and cultivated a small plot of ground. Most of the mounds with 
their basins of water were but little above the desert. One of 
them was remarkable for its size and altitude, rising, according 
to our estimate, to a height of thirty feet. It was very regular in 
form and had on its top a basin of shallow water, five or six feet 
in diameter, whence a very little water ran over the rim and down 
the sides. Standing on the top, I looked about the country to 
discover a higher point that might be the source of the water that 
fed the spring, but I could see nothing nearer than the Raha 
mountains, ten to twenty miles to the east. The desert gradually 
descended westward to the sea, distant one or two miles. 

The mound was a solid mass of rock — a coarse sandstone. 
The water contained lime or some other element which cemented 



68 Egypt and its Betrayal 

together the drifting sands. The mound being thus commenced, 
the water that ran over its sides united the particles of sand blown 
into it, thus continuing its growth. 

A geologist, who has lately examined the mound, asserts that 
the cementing element is the calcareous integuments of a small 
transparent insect, the water flea, of which he found myriads in 
the water of the basin. Whatever it may be that unites the sand 
and soUdifies it into solid rock, it is evident that the mound was 
formed and is still forming in the manner stated. 

According to tradition, this is the point of the assembling of 
the Israelites after their passage ^Hhrough the sea," the place 
where ''Moses and the children of Israel sang their songs of tri- 
umph, and Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a 
timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with 
timbrels and with dances." 

We were to have sailed from Suez on the morning of the third 
day after the making of our contract. As usual with the Arabs, 
there was delay and, before all was ready, the last rays of the 
evening twilight had disappeared. There was a strong north 
wind, which is the prevailing wind on the Red Sea at that 
season of the year. Our tent and our provisions for two weeks, 
including casks of Nile water, the only good water in Egypt, were 
on board, and the last tardy sailor had made his appearance. 
Our Consular Agent at Suez, with some friends, had come to see 
us off; but, when we were seemingly ready to sail, the captam 
came to me to say that we would do better to wait till morning, 
that he thought the wind would increase and that we should have 
a disagreeable night. 

This was what I had expected. In Egypt it is always "to- 
morrow," ''bookra." After much talk, we moved out of the 
harbor. There was a splendid sailing wind and the stars shone 
brightly, but there was no moon and it was damp and chilly. 
The tall Atakas soon shut off half the western sky and increased 




72 






:Z2 



A Journey to Mount Sinai 69 

the darkness. The wind, hugging the sea between the mountain 
ranges, gathered strength. We were making good time, but the 
boat pitched and rolled badly. Exposed to the wind and spray 
in an open boat, the prospects for the night were not very promis- 
ing either for comfort or sleep. 

At that season, bad storms were unusual, but the Red Sea, on 
account of the numerous coral reefs along its shores, is regarded 
as so dangerous for large saihng vessels, that those bound for 
India and other Oriental countries go around the Cape of Good 
Hope. This part of the sea is narrow, and, as we were on the 
direct track of the great number of ocean steamers that pass 
through the Suez Canal, a good lookout was kept. Thanks to the 
wind and the movement of the boat, there was little danger of 
the men sleeping on their watch. 

The Arabs are cautious and timid sailors and take as little risk 
as possible. With their small vessels, they generally follow the 
coasts and, when a safe landing-place can be found, pass the night 
on the shore. This sea has been the highway of Oriental com- 
merce through all historic periods, its vessels competing, up to 
the present age of steam, with the camels, '^ the ships of the des- 
erts," on the overland routes. The boat we were in was probably 
no better than the boats sent out by Solomon with the servants 
of Huram in the expeditions to Tarshish for gold, silver, ivory, 
incense and precious stones; ^ nor than those sent by Queen 
Hatshepsu in her famous expedition to the land of Punt ; nor than 
those afterwards used by the later Pharaohs, the Ptolemies, 
the Romans and the Arabs, whose craft have successively plowed 
these waters. 

We had a disagreeable night, but the next morning found us 
well on our voyage. Our boat was light, the lateen sails large, 
and the north wind still strong. Not a cloud was to be seen and 
the sun rose over the Wuta mountains, bright and warm, and 

lllChronicles, IX, 21. 



70 ^SyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

gave us the first day-view of the crew. The captain and sailors 
were barefooted and barelegged, with long blue cotton shirts 
fastened tightly with a girdle about the waist, as outside gar- 
ments. They wore the ordinary skullcap and turban. 

The warm sun soon took the moisture out of our blankets and 
garments, and a cup of coffee, made on a camp stove we had 
brought, relieved our fatigue and restored our natural amiability. 
During the day, mountain ranges were seen on either side, 
steamers were occasionally met or passed us. A little before 
sunset, the village of Tor, with its groves of palms, appeared 
and we were soon at anchor in its harbor. 

From Suez to Tor, on either side of the sea, are only waterless 
deserts without vegetation, except the few winter-plants. There 
are no habitations nor inhabitants. One shipwrecked on these 
shores would not find a morsel of food nor a drink of fresh water 
in the whole distance. 

While our tents were being pitched and dinner prepared, I 
called on the Governor, presented our letter from Cherif Pasha 
and informed him of our wishes. He said that there were two 
encampments of Arabs then not far from the town and that he 
would send a messenger asking them to bring in the requisite 
number of camels. 

Tor is a natural harbor, well protected by coral reefs, and fur- 
nishes the only safe anchorage for ships in this gulf, except the 
port of Suez. It is a small village of mud huts used chiefly as a 
quarantine station for pilgrims on their return from Jeddah, 
the seaport of Mecca. Every good Moslem is bound to under- 
take, once in his life, a pilgrimage to this holy city. The great 
mass of the population on the southern and eastern coasts of 
the Mediterranean, from Morocco to Turkey inclusive, are of 
the Mohammedan faith and the annual nmnber of pilgrims is 
very large. Most of these pilgrims, to avoid the long desert trip, 
make the journey by water. 



A Journey to Mount Sinai 71 

It has many times happened, that the pilgrims from India and 
Persia have brought with them to Mecca cholera and other dan- 
gerous, contagious diseases, which have thus been introduced 
into Egypt and Europe with fearful results. For this reason, 
the pilgrims have, in recent years, been stopped in Tor for ex- 
amination and retained in quarantine there as long as the health 
officers have thought necessary. 

Except when used for this purpose. Tor is only a very small, 
dead village. On the return of the pilgrims from Mecca, vessels 
are anchored in the harbor, and large numbers of tents are seen 
on the deserts near the sea. These are occupied by thousands 
of Moors, Arabs and Turks, from Morocco, Algiers, Tunis, Trip- 
oli, Egypt, Syria and Turkey, and are guarded by Egyptian 
soldiers. These different nationalities and various tribes wear 
the burnoose — a flowing robe — and the turban; but, in the 
color and other characteristics of their dress, there are often 
striking differences which add to the picturesqueness of the 
scene. 

The Sinai monks have a small convent at this place, occupied 
by several of their members, who receive and forward supplies 
of provisions to Sinai and have charge of some small palm-groves 
near the village, which belong to the order. Here also are large 
springs of good water from which the gardens are irrigated, but 
the supply is not sufficient for the pilgrims. The deficiency was 
formerly made up by water brought from Suez. It is now pro- 
vided for by distillation. 

The next morning, on coming -from my tent, I found a group 
of Bedouins with their camels awaiting us. Nearly the whole 
day was spent in examining and trying the animals, choosing 
such as we thought the best, in bargaining and in various prepara- 
tions. The camels of the desert are of a different race from those 
usually employed in Egypt. They are lighter, fleeter, and have 
an easier pace; but they must be carefully selected, since the 



72 Egypt and its Betrayal 

comfort of a desert trip depends very much on having an easy 
riding camel. 

During the day, we found time for a stroll along the shore, 
where we gathered a quantity of shells and coral which we placed 
on board our boat. The Red Sea furnishes many species of 
beautiful shells and some that are very large. At about four 
o'clock, we moved out of town. We had nine camels and one 
donkey, each camel being accompanied by a cameleer, on foot, 
and the donkey by a donkey-boy, who, in this case, was a full- 
grown man. The tents with their poles, pegs and other appur- 
tenances, our folding iron beds, our bedding, camp chairs, cook- 
ing utensils, personal effects and provisions (including crates of 
live chickens and other fowls) were all loaded upon the camels. 
Four of them carried only baggage; the others, both passengers 
and baggage. 

On account of the prevailing north wind and the consequent 
difficulty of returning by sea, directions had been given to have 
the boat taken back as far as Ras Abu Zenimeh, about half way 
to Suez, there to await us. Ras means cape, or headland, and 
Ras Abu Zenimeh is a point south of which vessels can lie, pro- 
tected from the north winds. The boat would have about 
twelve days to reach this place, but, if we failed to find it on our 
arrival, we were to continue by camels to Suez. It was conse- 
quently necessary to provide provisions sufficient for over two 
weeks. 

Our camels advanced in Indian file with such distances be- 
tween them as to give our party the appearance, on the desert, 
of a fair sized caravan. We only rode out to Umm Saad, a little 
over an hour in a northeast direction, and encamped for the 
night. There are here a spring of fresh water, a few palm-trees, 
and a small piece of cultivated land irrigated by the water of 
the spring. It was the last green spot we were to see before 
arriving at the gardens of Sinai. 



A Journey to Mount Sinai 73 

We were under way at an early hour the next morning, with 
the addition to our effects of goatskins of water attached to and 
swung under the camels' necks so as to rest against their breasts. 
We had also small sacks of drinking water which we had brought 
from the boat. Desert springs rarely furnish palatable water. 
It is generally charged with salts which give it a saline and 
disagreeable flavor. 

We now commenced a long, weary, monotonous ride diagon- 
ally across the slightly ascending desert of el-Ka'a. This desert 
plain, which runs in behind the coast mountains of el-Araba, ex- 
tends northward from Tor, forty miles, and southward, along 
the coast, forty-five miles to the southern point of the Sinai 
peninsula. Opposite Tor it is twenty miles wide. On the east, 
it is bounded by the Sinai mountains. After a short distance of 
sand, we found the desert covered with small stones which gradu- 
ally increased in size, becoming very large at the foot of the 
mountain range. 

In 1863, Abbas Pasha, then Viceroy of Egypt, visited Sinai 
and conceived the intention of constructing a road from Tor to 
the holy mountain. He was assassinated the following year and 
little was accomplished, except the clearing of the stone from 
the route we were traveling across the desert of el-Ka'a. This 
was an important improvement, as the stone so covered the 
ground in many places, that passage even with camels was diffi- 
cult. Geologically speaking, this desert is of the cretaceous, 
tertiary formation. 

After leaving the immediate vicinity of the coast, we saw 
neither animal nor vegetable life. It had not rained in eight 
months and the very few plants which grow on the desert had 
either disappeared or were dried and withered. Not an animal, 
not a bird, not an insect, not a leaf relieved the absolute desola- 
tion. The north wind was not strong enough to raise the sand; 
but the heat of the sun, its glare reflected from the desert, the 



74 Egypt and its Betrayal 

continuous plain covered with stone which had been reddened 
and blackened by the heat of centuries, the seeming remoteness 
of the yellow-tinted mountain range, the foot of which was the 
goal of our day's journey, all contributed to make the day tire- 
some and long. Pack-camels travel only two to two and a half 
miles an hour. 

I had been instructed how to avoid the excessive fatigue caused 
by the irregular motion of the slow-walking camel, which throws 
the body of the rider incessantly backwards and forwards with 
a jerking movement both disagreeable and tiresome. Light 
packages were placed upon each side of the saddle and covered 
with blankets and wraps, making a broad, flat seat. This enabled 
the rider to sit in any position and change as often as desired. 
If I felt fatigued, I urged the camel into a trot, and, when at a 
sufficient distance in advance of the caravan, dismounted and 
rested till the others arrived. In contradiction to what is said 
by some writers, I found the trotting of the camel easy and its 
walking unpleasant. 

We reached the base of the mountains some time before night 
and continued our journey for about two hours up a deep, 
narrow, rocky ravine, Wadi Hebran, finding a camping place by 
a spring, which ordinarily had an abundance of water. It was 
then well-nigh dry. It contained the only water found on our 
route to Sinai. Near it were a few stunted palms. The gorge 
was narrow, only wide enough for a passage, and the granite 
rocks on either side rose precipitously to a great height. 

The journey was resumed at a rather late hour the next morn- 
ing and continued in this defile until some time in the afternoon. 
It was a constant and in some places a very steep cUmb. The 
path led over large masses of granite, in which places had been 
cut for the camels' broad feet. Over these rough, steep passes, 
the trusty animals moved as quietly and securely as a cat. At 
some points, the height of the rider on their backs increased the 

i 



A Journey to Mount Sinai 75 

real or apparent danger, but there was no mishap. A little after 
noon, we espied a small bird, the only living creature seen on 
the whole route. There are several species of animals in these 
mountains. The hare, the jackal, the wild goat, the hyena and 
the leopard are said to live here, but they are rare and are seldom 
seen. 

Some time in the afternoon we passed into the Wadi, or valley 
el-Ejjawi, whence, soon afterwards, we entered the Wadi Solaf 
on one of the ordinary camel routes from Suez. Near the junc- 
tion of these two routes were a number of very ancient, beehive- 
shaped stone huts, of an unknown origin. They are called na- 
wamis, ^'mosquito houses," by the Bedouins and it was in them, 
according to tradition, that the rebellious Israelites took refuge 
from the plague of mosquitoes sent, as a punishment, by the 
Lord. The nawamis were in the form of an irregular circle and 
from twelve to fifteen feet in diameter. They were constructed 
in the following manner: a thick wall was built up perpendicu- 
larly about three feet and then gradually drawn in until a circu- 
lar roof was formed, with a hole in the center which was covered 
with a flat stone. 

At this point we were over three thousand feet above the desert 
of el-Ka'a. Cliffs and mountain peaks were seen on every side. 
To the west, directly in our rear, towered Mt. Serbal, high above 
all the others, nearly seven thousand feet above the sea. Serbal 
was originally identified by the early Christians as the Sinai of 
the Bible. Many learned men are still of the opinion, that its 
claim to be considered the ''Holy Mountain" is sustained by the 
stronger proofs. 

We found an ideal camping ground for the night on a sandy 
plateau where there were a number of small thorn trees and many 
dried desert plants. The camels were relieved of their burdens 
and allowed to browse. Our tents were hastily pitched and 
dinner prepared. Dried plants, dead trees and roots, sufficient 



76 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

for a fire during the night, were collected and branches of thorn 
trees were brought in and cut up finely, with large knives re- 
sembling butchers' cleavers, for the camels on their return to 
camp. Our table was spread in the larger tent. There was served 
a dinner, as sumptuous as could be desired, which we ate with 
unsurpassed relish, thanks to the wearisome day's journey and 
the clear, cool, mountain air. 

A large camp-fire was built and the camels were brought in 
and made to crouch in a circle around the fire, with their heads 
inward, and their legs folded under them after the manner of 
their race. Each was given a handful of beans brought from 
Suez and, afterwards, some of the chopped thorn tree branches. 
The Arabs had partaken of their scanty meal of coarse bread, 
a few cooked lentils, and the fragments from our table. Their 
day's work being ended and all preparations made for the night, 
these simple sons of the desert were seated, Turkish style, on 
the sand in an inner circle next to the fire. 

Some of the more gifted of their number commenced the narra- 
tion of wild tales resembling those Arabian stories which ever 
delight childhood. The auditors were certainly interested, for, 
till late into the night, I heard their warm applause, the pro- 
longed '' Aah ! Aah ! Aah ! Allah ! Allah ! Allah ! " The fire was well 
kept, but weariness finally came and one after another fell 
asleep. Only toward the morning hours did the hum of voices 
cease and leave the travelers in their tents, just outside this 
charmed circle, to the solitude, the fearful stillness of a night 
on the desert. 

These solitudes produce peculiar emotions. They remind one 
of the old patriarchs, who, in their desert homes, far removed 
from the scenes of busy multitudes, surrounded only by their 
families and their flocks, seem, by reason of this isolation from 
the world, to have held a closer communion with nature and with 
God. 



A Journey to Mount Sinai 77 

There are about five thousand Bedouins inhabiting the Sinai 
peninsula, and they are known under the name of Tawarah 
(people of Tor). The ancient name of the peninsula was Tute, 
whence the name Tur or Tor, as it is more generally written. 
These Arabs live upon the scanty products of their oases, the milk 
of their camels, goats and sheep, and upon what they receive for 
furnishing travelers with camels, transporting supplies from 
Suez and Tor to the convent at Sinai, and conveying millstone 
and other articles to Egypt. They are sometimes employed 
with their camels on the borders of the Delta and occasionally 
sell one of these animals. They have a very few sheep and 
goats, neither of which are often sold. They live in tents, ex- 
cept that there are a few huts near Tor and on the oasis of Feran 
through which we shall pass on our return to the sea. In these 
places, there are small parcels of cultivated land and a few date- 
palms, the ownership of the latter being divided between many 
persons not habitually dwelling there. A Bedouin often owns but 
a single tree. These people have the reputation of being very 
honest. It is said that no one ever partakes of the dates of an 
absent owner. 

The different tribes of the Tawarah have for centuries served 
or protected the Sinai monks. The monks, in turn, are very kind 
to these children of the desert, feeding each day, just outside 
their gates, those who from age, decrepitude, or sickness are 
unable to sustain themselves. 

On our arrival at the camping place I have just mentioned, 
Hassan was very ill with a high fever. I gave him aconite for a 
few hours, and the next morning he had so nearly recovered that 
we continued our journey. He ever afterwards had the strongest 
faith in my medical abilities. 

The camp-breakfast was ready as soon as we were prepared 
for it. It was hastily eaten, the tents were taken down and the 
beds were carefully sacked to keep them free from the insects 



78 l^gypt '^^^^^ its Betrayal 

that are always found in an Arab camp. Then there was the 
bustle of packing, the kneeling of the camels, the loading and 
mounting, and the caravan was again under way. These are 
some of the usual incidents of the nightly camp on the desert. 

Our route led, for some time, along the base of the mountains. 
During the forenoon, we left the Wadi Solaf, and, taking our last 
(hstant view on this route of Mt. Serbrd, we entered the defile of 
Nugb el Hawa (Pass of the Wind). We then had a rise of about 
two thousand feet in a distance of five miles. The scene in this 
winding gorge was indescribably wild and desolate. The granite 
mountains rose, on either side, in precipitous shattered cliffs 
eight hundred to two thousand feet. The narrow and difficult 
pass, the bed of a deep, swift, winter torrent, was lined by mas- 
sive pieces of rock, which had been detached from the towering 
cliffs. These rocks nearly blocked the way, leaving in many 
places but a scanty space for the loaded camel. There was an 
occasional stunted tree and a very little vegetation, but these 
in no way relieved the desolate grandeur of this high, rugged 
mountain pass. 

The difficult work of clearing the camel path among these great 
blocks of stone was done by the early Christians. Some of the 
rocks were moved, the path was made to wind in and out among 
others and, in some cases, a way was made over immovable 
masses by laying other rocks beside them. This was the shorter 
of the only two passes through the mountain barrier, which rose 
in some places nearly seven thousand feet above the sea and 
was only a few miles distant, on the northwest of Sinai. 

For two and a half hours the camels, carefully placing their 
feet, slowly mounted with their burdens. On reaching the sum- 
mit, we were a mile above the sea, and at the entrance of the 
plain of Er-Raha (Rest). 



Mount Sinai 79 



CHAPTER VIII 



MOUNT SINAI 



Suddenly and unexpectedly we had before us a scene of im- 
posing grandeur. In front was a plain, from one-fourth to a half 
mile in width and nearly two miles in length. It descended 
gently to the base of Pv,as Sufsafeh (Mount of the Willow), a wall 
of naked rock which rose abruptly directly before us, nearly two 
thousand feet. Behind it, nearly a thousand feet higher, was 
Jebel Miisa, the ''Mount of Moses." These two mountains con- 
stitute the principal part of the Sinai group, their summits being 
nearly two miles apart. 

On the left of this group, is the Wadi ed-Der, at the base of 
which is the convent of St. Catherine with its high walls, trees 
and gardens. Opposite the convent, on the other side of the 
narrow valley, is another mountain group of about the same 
extent and nearly as high as that of Sinai. To the left of the 
plain of Er Ptaha, is Mount el-Eskiif, and to the right. Mount 
el-Ghabsheh. All these mountains are mere masses of angular, 
naked, igneous rock, composed mostly of granites and syenites. 

The high, desolate, sandy plateau lying at our feet, amid the 
surrounding mountain walls, was the supposed place of the en- 
campment of the Israelites before the "Holy Mountain." That 
mountain, rising before us, was the scene of the glory and power 
of God, of the delivery of the tablets of the law, of thunders and 
lightnings, of the ''strong wind that rent the mountains and 
broke in pieces the rocks, before the Lord." It was the spot 



8o EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

where came to Elijah, after the wind, the earthquake, and the 
fire, the '^ still small voice." ^ 

On our arrival at the convent, we presented our letters, were 
kindly received and, by invitation, pitched our tents in the gar- 
dens, which were surrounded by high walls. The camels and 
Arabs remained outside, camping in the desert until the time of 
our departure. The gardens contain but a few acres and are 
irrigated during the long rainless summer by waters from a reser- 
voir which is filled in the winter. They are at the base of the 
mountain slope, and a high retaining wall has been built on the 
upper side to protect them from the torrents caused by the winter 
rains. They form a small oasis, the fragrance of which is refresh- 
ing and delightful to one who has been traveling for days on 
the desert. They produce a variety of vegetables and among 
their fruits are the orange, quince, almond, peach, olive, fig and 
pomegranate. Vines climb the walls and a number of tall cypress 
trees lend, during the hot summer, their grateful shade. 

It had been hazy during the latter part of the day and, after 
the setting of the sun, the heavens were completely obscured. 
In the evening, a monk came to our tent to say that the Prior 
sent us an invitation to come into the convent for the night, 
adding that he thought it would rain before morning. This 
change would require the removal of all our beds and effects, as 
only empty uninviting rooms could be furnished or rooms with 
beds we did not care to occupy. So, after consultation, we con- 
cluded to remain in our tents and sent our thanks to the prelate 
for his thoughtful kindness. 

At about two o'clock, we were awakened by a sharp report of 
thunder. This was soon succeeded by another and then peal on 
peal quickly followed and reverberated from mountain to moun- 
tain, the sound being heightened, sharpened and quickened by 
its confinement between the lofty surrounding cHffs. Our tent 

^ I Kings, XIX, 12. 



Mount Sinai 8i 

was intermittently as light as day. On going outside, we wit- 
nessed one of the grandest displays of nature. The heavens were 
ablaze. Piercing, dazzling lines of fire darted in every direction 
among the overhanging rocks, hghting up mountains and valleys. 
These were followed by sharp, deafening peals, that made the 
mountains tremble, as if they were rent asunder. The reverbera- 
tion, at first sharp, quick and loud, slowly died away in the 
distance, like a roar of falling fragments crashing down the 
mountain sides. 

Fierce thunder-storms are always impressive, and especially 
in childhood. The lightning, the thunder, the wind, the rain of 
such wild scenes remain vivid in the memory. But I have 
never witnessed anything approaching in its fierceness, its power, 
its awful grandeur, the thunders of Sinai. Their sharp crashing 
peals echoed from mountain to mountain, as if tearing away 
the summits and scattering the fragments in the surrounding 
valleys. I was reminded of the graphic Biblical account of the 
scene in the same place, thirty-two hundred years before, when 
" there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud upon the 
mount, and the Lord descended upon it in fire, and the smoke 
thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole moun- 
tain quaked greatly." 

Wind and rain immediately followed and soon we heard the 
roar of the torrents coming down the mountain side. The ground, 
covered with water, was softening and our tent though doubly 
secured began yielding to the force of the storm. Hassan and 
the gardener were on the outside with mallets vainly trying to 
fasten the stakes and hold the tent in place. It was three o'clock 
and the convent bells were calling the monks to the chapel for 
prayers. 

We were already well drenched, and the little protection we 
had seemed about to be removed. We began to consider whether 
we would not have done better to accept the invitation to enter 



82 Egypt and its Betrayal 

the convent. General Loring with a soldier's tenacity still 
strongly insisted upon remaining outside. The prelate had not 
forgotten us. He sent a monk to renew the invitation, and to say 
that there was danger of the falling of the high retaining wall 
under which we were encamped. This settled the question, and 
we removed, as best we could, through a driving storm into the 
convent. 

In the morning, all the momi tains were white with a thin layer 
of snow. Thus suddenly had the long, dry summer changed to 
winter. We remained at the convent during our first day at 
Sinai, resting and viewing the objects of interest. 

The mountains of the Sinai peninsula were regarded as sacred 
long before the time of Moses and have continued to be so re- 
garded until the present time by a large number of people. 

Early in the Christian period, perhaps in the first century, 
anchorites commenced locating in the mountains and glens of 
this remote desert region. They erected small stone structures, 
cut rooms in the rocks, or sought out natural caves in which 
to lead hermit lives. Their numbers increased and, at one 
time in the Middle Ages, it is said that there were no less than six 
thousand of these religious people among the mountains, either 
as hermits (anchorites), or in congregations (cenobites). They 
were frequently robbed and murdered and were sometimes 
massacred in large numbers by the Arabs. 

Their sufferings and persecutions did not diminish their re- 
ligious fervor, nor prevent their places from being filled by new 
converts. In many cases, they fled from persecution in their own 
country; but more often they were actuated by the religious idea, 
still very prevalent in various European countries, of leading a 
holy life in solitude. These wild mountain deserts, with their 
sacred historical associations, were naturally a favorite resort for 
persons disposed to indulge in this peculiar religious manifesta- 
tion. Their number has been for a long time diminishing, and 



Mount Sinai 83 

to-day there are no hermits and probably not more than forty 
monks dwelling on the peninsula. 

There are chapels and convents in ruins and many grottoes, 
once inhabited, in various places among the mountains. These 
are generally in high valleys, but sometimes in almost inaccessi- 
ble chffs. At a very early period many anchorites settled in 
the vicinity of Mount Sinai and claimed it as the real ''Horeb," 
the ^' Mount of the Law." In a. d. 530, the Emperor Justinian 
built at Sinai a church surrounded by a fortress for the protec- 
tion of the monks who had previously lived isolated in natural 
or artificial caves and rude stone huts. The Empress Helena 
constructed about 326, on the site of the ''Burning Bush," a 
tower and a chapel, which were included within the walls of 
the fortress. The true site of the ''Burning Bush" was a long 
time in doubt, but the exact place was finally revealed by a 
pious monk to whom the Angel of the Lord had appeared in a 
dream. 

The fortress of Justinian is said to be the present convent. It 
encloses a little over an acre of land, which is now covered with 
the convent buildings and their courts. On its high, thick, 
granite walls, are picturesque towers and covered promenades 
which provide the monks with a cool summer resort. Ancient 
loop-holes are still seen and, on the battlements, are a few old, 
useless cannon. Arabs have never been allowed within the walls 
and, until a recent date, visitors were admitted only by a door 
about thirty feet from the ground to which they were drawn by 
a windlass. There was at the time of our visit a very narrow 
side door opening from the gardens, through which entrance 
was made by a narrow stairway leading up to the level of the 
buildings. There was also, formerly, a well protected under- 
ground passage from the convent to the gardens. 

Some of the convent buildings have been several times de- 
stroyed by fire and all of them have been restored or rebuilt 



84 ^gyp^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

with changes and additions to meet the necessities of the times 
or the caprices of the prelates. The whole interior is now a con- 
fused mass of buildings, connected by a labyrinth of small pas- 
sages, through which the traveler is conducted. The buildings 
and their contents are interesting, but not very remarkable in 
comparison with those of other similar institutions. 

The church, which was built at the same epoch as the fortress 
in the form of the Roman basilica, is massive and grand and has 
rows of granite columns between its aisles. It has chapels, 
altars, numerous paintings, mosaics of the seventh or eighth 
century, swinging candelabra, a hundred lamps, and many rich 
presents, including those of the Empress Catherine of Russia, 
and Alexander II. It has also many holy relics, among them, 
the skull and hand of St. Catherine, the philosopher, who was 
executed at Alexandria a. d. 312, and whose body was carried 
by angels, three hundred years after her martyrdom, from that 
city to the top of Mount Katarina. As a proof of the fact, the 
monks point to a depression in the floor of an old chapel on the 
summit of that mountain, which they affirm was miraculously 
made by the body at the place in which it was found. An 
account of the miracles performed in the holy mountains would 
fill volumes. 

In the chapel of the ^^ Burning Bush," a silver plate indicates 
the place where the bush stood, as shown by the angel to the 
monk. Over it is an altar with suspended lamps, which are kept 
constantly burning. On entering this chapel from the church, 
a descent of several steps is made, indicating that the chapel has 
been maintained in its original place and that the church and 
other buildings are higher than the earhest constructions. It 
is claimed that the chapel is the oldest building in the convent, 
some being of the opinion that it dates from the time of the 
Empress Helena. 

Before entering, you are required, as Moses was, to take off 



Mount Sinai 85 

your shoes/ but the monks have thoughtfully covered the floor 
with rich carpets. The silver plate was removed for us, as a 
special favor, leaving an opening in the floor, that we might see 
the exact place where the bush stood. ^'And the angel of the 
Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire, out of the midst of 
the bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush burned with fire, 
and the bush was not consumed." ^ 

There is a small mosque near the church, said to have been 
built by the monks to prevent the destruction of the convent, 
at the time of the conquest of Egypt by Selim, the Ottoman 
Emperor. It has one minaret but contains nothing of interest. 

The convent library is a valuable collection. It contains many 
hundreds of ancient manuscripts, in Greek, Arabic, Persian, 
Syrian and other languages, some of them beautifully illumi- 
nated. It is particularly celebrated for having contained the 
famous Codex Sinaiticus, a nearly complete fourth century copy 
of the Bible, second in age and importance only to the Codex 
Vaticanus. This manuscript is now in St. Petersburg, having 
been purchased by the Emperor of Russia, Alexander II. 

Near the middle of the gardens, and connected with the con- 
vent by dark underground passages, are the vaults in which rest 
the remains of the monks and priests who have died at Sinai. 
There are two vaults and a small chapel. One vault contains 
the remains of the lay brothers, the ordinary monks — a mass of 
bones, the skulls in one heap, and the other bones in another. 
The other vault contains the remains of the priests, bishops and 
saints, in rude coffins. A few ghastly skeletons are placed against 
the walls, and that of St. Stephen, the porter, who died in 580, 
is sitting by the door of the priests' vault, with a violet velvet 
skull-cap on his head and his mantle wTapped around him. 

The convent had at the time of our visit about thirty inmates, 
monks and priests. The former did the work of the establish- 
1 Ex. Ill, 5. 2 Id. 2. 



86 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

ment — the cooking, cleaning, washing, etc. — ^made the clothing 
and kept the buildings in repair. They also served as guides 
to the occasional travelers who visit this remote region. Their 
lives are those of ascetics. Their principal food is coarse bread, 
vegetables and fruits. They partake of neither meat nor wine, 
and, during their long fasts, use neither milk nor oils. They 
belong to the Greek church and have services, mass or long 
rituals, eight times during each twenty-four hours. Every monk 
is required to be present at two, at least, of these services during 
the day, and at the same number during the night. 

It is difficult to comprehend the reUgious enthusiasm or devo- 
tion that causes strong men to leave their homes and kindred in 
order to spend their lives in this remote and desolate place. 
They submit here to a discipline and confinement nearly as strict 
as that of a prison. They have no luxuries, no comforts even, 
and, from a secular point of view, no prospects. They can hope 
for nothing more than passing a monotonous physical existence 
and adding their bones to the heaps already accumulated in the 
ghastly charnel-house of Sinai. 

Their hardships, to-day, are slight in comparison with those 
of the periods when these mountain sides were covered with 
hermit dwellings. Then, as now, sufferings and loss of life, in- 
stead of deterring others, only acted as a stimulant, inciting them 
to take the places of the fallen and to assume, as a self-imposed 
duty, the same burdens and endure the same privations as their 
predecessors. 



Ascent of Mount Sinai 87 



CHAPTER IX 

ASCENT OF MOUNT SINAI 

The next day, we made the ascent of Jebel Musa, designated 
by the monks the "Mount of the Law." In the rear of the con- 
vent, there is a path up the mountain known as the "Pilgrims' 
Steps." Rough, irregular blocks of granite, of various sizes, are 
arranged to make a stairway. In the steeper parts of the ascent, 
they are sometimes two feet in height, making it necessary to 
climb or scramble over them. This is as fatiguing as the ascent 
of the Great Pyramid, and the rise is four times as great. Three 
hours of severe labor, by a good mountain traveler, is required 
to reach the summit. This route is said to have been constructed 
in the sixth or seventh century and, though in a bad condition, 
is still used. It leads diagonally up the mountain side and, in 
half an hour, we reach a cool, never failing spring, issuing from 
under a large granite bowlder. 

According to the Arabs, this is where Moses watered the flocks 
of Jethro, and they have given it the name of the "Fountain of 
Moses." The monks, however, claim that the waters came forth 
in answer to the prayers of a holy abbot, at a time when the 
springs at the convent had failed, and that the real "Spring of 
Moses," where Jethro's flocks were watered, is at the convent. 
As there have been no revelations made to any pious monk, nor 
any edict of the church settling this important question, the 
traveler is allowed to choose between the Moslem and the 
Christian claims. The spring furnishes excellent water and has a 



88 -^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

right to be proud of the distinction of having supplied, in 
this desert region, either Moses, Jethro's cattle, or the holy 
monks. 

Having rested a few minutes and partaken of the waters of 
this venerable spring, we continued our slow march, or rather 
climb, up the path that had been traveled by pilgrims for many 
centuries. There was no lack of convenient resting places. In 
a very short time, we were at a chapel dedicated to the Virgin 
Mary, a small building of rough stone. There is no dispute re- 
garding the miracle, the memory of which is here perpetuated. 
All the books and traditions agree and we have no alternative 
but to accept the version given. At a time in the dim, distant 
past, the plague of fleas became so intolerable at the convent, 
that the good monks formed the hardy and solemn resolution to 
leave their cells and flee to the mountains. At this precise spot, 
the mournful procession was met by the Holy Virgin, who or- 
dered them to return and promised relief. They obeyed like 
good Christians and, on their return, they found that their tor- 
mentors had disappeared. Whether the fleas remained away 
I am unable to give evidence, as we slept in our own beds and 
took ample precaution against annoying intruders. 

Continuing our ascent, we soon came to a narrow pass, over 
which there was a rude arch forming a gateway and, a little fur- 
ther on, a second. Here, in the days of numerous pilgrims, 
priests were stationed to receive confessions and administer 
the sacrament. We next reached a small level place, green in its 
season, having a single gigantic cypress and near by a spring. 
It was surrounded with reddish granite rock, rising in masses 
and pinnacles. After climbing over a few more large blocks we 
reached a small stone building, in which are the two chapels of 
Elijah and Elisha, and the grotto where the former dwelt when 
he fled from Jezebel. "And he rose and did eat and drink, and 
went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights 



Ascent of Mount Sinai 89 

unto Horeb, the Mount of God. And he came thither unto a cave, 
and lodged there." ^ 

We had been chmbing the mountain side over two hours. 
General Loring had the aid of his colored servant, but was nearly 
exhausted and some distance in the rear. With his one arm and 
his years, this climbing and scrambling over the granite blocks 
were too much, both for his limbs and temper. I fear that the 
spirits of the departed monks, still Hngering in these holy places, 
were much disturbed. Hassan, corpulent, unaccustomed in his 
hot chmate to much exercise, and handicapped by his cumber- 
some Oriental dress, came struggling up, puffing and wheezing, 
vexed and disgusted, on account of the lassitude he was unable 
to conceal. 

We had now reached a height which enabled us to obtain fine 
views of the surrounding mountains. We were at the base of 
the peak, Jebel Musa, which for the first time had come into full 
view. Its summit was yet an hour distant, directly south of us. 
A little to its right, several miles away, on the other side of Wadi 
el-Leja, was St. Katarina, the highest point on the Sinai penin- 
sula, eight thousand five hundred feet above the sea. Near by 
to the west was a long ridge connecting Jebel Musa with Ras 
Sufsafeh. Continuing our ascent of the "Mount of Moses," we 
were shown near its summit a small depression in the granite 
rock, which, according to Moslem tradition, was the track of 
the camel Mohammed rode on the occasion of his miraculous 
visit to Sinai. On the summit was another small chapel and a 
mosque built on the ruins of an ancient convent. 

A cave beneath the mosque is the traditional place of Moses' 
sojourn on the Mount. ''And Moses went into the midst of a 
cloud, and got him up into the mount, and Moses was in the 
mount forty days and forty nights." ^ A cleft in the rock near 
the chapel was shown as the place where the great lawgiver 
1 I Kings, XIX, 8. 2E3,xXIV, 18. 



go EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

stood when the Lord passed by. "And it shall come to pass 
while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a cleft of the 
rocks, and will cover thee with mine hand, while I pass by." ^ 

The day was clear, but cold for that latitude. The mountains 
were still white with snow, except the steep cliffs where there was 
no place for it to lodge. The whole scene was wild and desolate, 
bleak momitain ranges rising one above another at nearly every 
point of the compass. In the immediate vicinity there was no 
visible valley, the valley views all being shut off by the lower 
projections of the mountain group. 

On the east side of Jebel Miisa there was a precipitate descent 
of one thousand feet, but no place where an assembled host, like 
the great body of the Israelites, could have encamped, and from 
or near their camp have witnessed the scenes described in the 
Biblical narrative. Our descent was made leisurely, in order to 
enjoy the fine mountain views on the north and west. 

The next morning. General Loring concluded that he had had 
enough of mountain climbing, and decided to remain at the con- 
vent. Mr. VanDyke wished to visit Mt. Katarina, and asked 
that Hassan might accompany him. They were fitted out and 
left at an early hour. 

Mounted on a camel with a monk for a guide, I set out for Ras 
Sufsafeh. The monk was a Greek, about thirty years old, over 
six feet in height and, in form and strength, a real Hercules. 
We went southeasterly up Wadi Shu'aib, which is a continua- 
tion from the convent of Wadi ed-Der and, turning gradually 
first toward the southwest and then west, crossed our track of 
the previous day at the small plain of the cypress. 

Here, the camel was sent back to the convent with the came- 
leer. We continued on foot, following a difficult path on the 
northern slope of the rocky ridge that connects the two mountain 
peaks. We passed the remains of the ancient chapel of St. John 

1 Ex. XXXIII, 22. 



Ascent of Mount Sinai 91 

the Baptist, several grottoes once occupied by hermits, and an 
old cistern. Descending slightly, we came to the chapel of the 
^'Sacred Girdle of the Virgin." There were here a few trees, 
among which was the willow that has given its name to the 
mountain (Sufsafeh). 

There is a tradition that it was from this venerable willow 
that Moses cut his miraculous rod. Neither the age of the tree, 
nor the fact that the tradition does not accord with the Biblical 
narrative seem to weaken in the least the blind faith of the simple 
believer. Through some mishap, the rod, which might have 
been used as confirmatory evidence, has not been preserved. 
We shall, however, see later the rock it smote and this may cure 
us of our infidelity. 

We had been over three hours in coming from the convent and 
had before us only a short, but difficult, ascent to the summit of 
Sufsafeh. At first, we found steps, but afterwards we were 
obHged to scramble up the steep side of the mountain. On 
reaching the summit, we obtained our views, standing in a broad 
cleft of a rock closed above by a well-formed, natural arch. 
Nearly two thousand feet below us was the plain of Er-Raha, 
through which we had passed on the day of our arrival. We had 
then looked up to this towering mountain with its almost per- 
pendicular face. Now the plain was in full view far below us, 
with lofty mountains on either side. 

Every historical question or association apart, the scene was 
one of the grandest and most imposing. The historical questions 
are: Was this the real ''Mount of the Law"? Were the valley 
and plains lying before us once covered with the encampments 
of the Israelites, who, looking up to the place where we were 
standing, saw the ''glory of the Lord like a devouring fire on the 
top of the mount"? Many learned theologians beUeve this to 
be, contrary to monkish tradition, the "Mount of the Law." 
It is not my intention to discuss or give an opinion upon any 



92 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

of the theories or beliefs regarding Mt. Sinai that have from 
time to time occupied the attention of Christian people. I will 
simply insert the words of one, who, like many others, believed 
this place to have been the theater of the scenes described in 
the book of Exodus. 

''Here is a plain sufficient for the encampment of the whole 
people; there is the mountain rising up from it, which the care- 
less, or the daring might approach and touch; and here, too, is 
the commanding peak, where dark clouds and lightning flashes 
would be visible to all. . . . All around are nature's own un- 
changing features. There are the mountains, and there the 
vales, that the Israelites gazed upon; there are the very peaks 
that were once shadowed by the clouds, that hid the Almighty 
from the view of His astonished people; that were once lit up 
by the lurid glare of the lightnings; and that once gave back in 
their echoes the awful voice of heaven's trumpet when it pro- 
claimed the advent of heaven's King." 

A little to the south of the place where we were standing was 
a circular elevation, a knoll of reddish gray granite, rising two 
hundred feet above us. On its summit was a small conical pile 
of loose stone, showing that some one had visited the place. I 
saw no way of approach, but was prompted to attempt the 
ascent by the very natural desire of reaching the highest point. 

My Greek guide spoke no language that I understood, except 
that he knew a very few words of French. I succeeded in learn- 
ing from him that the pile of stone had been placed there by 
an Englishman, Captain Palmer. As to whether we could make 
the ascent, he answered by a nod of the head. He also used the 
words ^'daine Americaine,'' and, by gesture, gave me to under- 
stand that he had made the ascent with her. Thus encouraged, 
notwithstanding the cold, strong wind and the snow still lying 
in many places on the mountain, I also undertook to reach this 
summit, not apprehending any danger nor serious difficulty. 



Ascent of Mount Sinai 93 

We scrambled for some time on the side of a dividing ridge to 
near its top. Here the monk sat down, took off his shoes, and 
indicated by a motion that I should also take off mine. Leaving 
our shoes we continued our ascent, he barefooted, and I in my 
stockings. 

The monks are accustomed, like the natives, to going bare- 
footed. They sometimes wear sandals and, for mountain travel, 
shoes, but they are much more at ease without any pedal en- 
cumbrances. In this condition, they are certainly very sure- 
footed and able to climb among the cliffs with perfect safety. 
The change in my case was of doubtful utility. The monk led 
the way and I followed as best I could over the rough, sharp, 
angular granite, limping and trying to maintain my equiUbrium, 
but without cognizance of what was around me or where I was 
going. 

On passing over the ridge we were on the outer and western 
side of the mountain. We soon came to a kind of shelf or pro- 
jection, not more than twelve or fourteen inches wide, that ran 
along the side of the cliff. My guide took my hand and, without 
stopping, or giving me a moment to view the awful chasm below, 
led me about thirty feet along this projection to its end, where 
there was an elevation of about four feet. With the agility and 
sure-footedness of a chamois, he mounted and drew me after 
him and we were upon the granite knoll I had seen from below, 
but some hundreds of feet from its summit. The way was still 
steep, but presented no serious difficulty. 

It was at this moment that I first fully realized my position. 
Below the narrow shelf along which we had passed, there was a 
descent, almost perpendicular in reality and quite so in appear- 
ance, of fifteen hundred feet. The wind was blowing with such 
force that, on further ascending towards the summit, we were 
obliged to stand still or sit down during the stronger gusts. The 
least misstep or loss of balance, while threading our narrow path 



94 Egypt and its Betrayal 

along the side of the cUff, would have thrown us from these lofty 
heights into the abyss below. The rock above the shelf was also 
nearly perpendicular, and the only path by which it was possible 
to pass to the elevation above was the one by which we had 
mounted. 

We proceeded to the summit, the place of the pile of stone. 
The views were no better than those I had already passed, and, 
had they been, I should not have fully enjoyed them. I was 
seriously considering how I should descend the steep decUne to 
the edge of the precipice, and there, on the very face of the cliff, 
slip down to the narrow shelf. I knew by experience that climb- 
ing the sides of steep rocks was much easier and less dangerous 
than descending. In descending, you must go down backwards, 
without being able to see where to place your feet, and, in this 
case, there was nothing by which to hold with the hands. 

I again resorted to pantomime to ascertain whether there was 
any other way of descent and received, in answer, a shake of the 
head. As we re-approached the edge of the cliff, the slant of 
the rock became so much steeper that I commenced slipping and 
was obliged to sit down and, in this position, approach the 
dreaded place. The monk had preceded me and had slipped 
down with the confidence and ease of a cat upon the narrow 
rock projection, where he stood ready to aid me. As I ap- 
proached him I commenced sliding and was only held back by 
his taking hold of me. But get down I could not. 

The valley of El-Leja and the plain of Er-Raha were lying 
stretched out before us, nearly two thousand feet below, and I 
was sitting on the edge of the cliff, as helpless as an infant, held 
in my position by a Greek monk. I need not say that I was 
frightened, that shudders ran over me and that lumps filled my 
throat. Many years have now passed, but my situation at that 
moment on the edge of the precipitous cliff, with the deep, broad 
valley below, and the surrounding mountains, still remains a 



Ascent of Mount Sinai 95 

vivid picture in my memory. I never think of it without a 
shudder, and even while I now write a strange feeling passes over 
me. 

The monk tried to reassure me and to aid me to descend to 
the narrow shelf on the side of the rocks, but I could do nothing. 
Finally, he drew me towards him, took me in his arms, walked 
steadily along the shelf to the other end, carrying me as he would 
a child, and the peril was over. 

Under all the circumstances, it was an athletic feat of no or- 
dinary character, although my weight was not more than one 
hundred and fifty-fiVe pounds. If he had conducted me into this 
place with any waggish mischievousness, he certainly took me 
out with a coolness and heroism deserving much praise. 

Satisfied with the day's climbing and adventure, we sought 
our shoes and descended the mountain directly to Wadi ed-Der. 
It was a rough and difficult path, but one giving us many in- 
teresting views of wild, fantastic rock formations. Mr. Van 
Dyke and Hassan returned late from the difficult ascent of Mt. 
Katarina. 



96 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER X 

OASIS OF FERAN AND RETURN TO THE SEA 

The weather continued unsettled and threatening and, as the 
season was far advanced (the commencement of December), we 
concluded to prepare for our return. Unexpected difficulties 
arose. Some Arabs had arrived who claimed the exclusive right 
of taking us back to the sea by the northern route. It appeared 
that the territory had been divided and that certain Arabs had 
the monopoly of the carrying trade in the northern, and others 
in the southern, part of the peninsula. After much loud talk and 
quarreling among the Arabs, in which General Loring took a 
vigorous part with his cane, a compromise was effected by which 
we retained our best riding camels, while the other camels were 
exchanged. Having made the usual donation to the convent, 
we bade adieu to the pious monks, not without regretting that 
we could not remain longer and make a more thorough study 
of the places which have been, according to the belief of many 
millions, the scenes of some of the most important events in the 
history of the Christian religion. 

Retaining for the forenoon our faithful monk-guide, we sent 
our pack-camels on into the Wadi esh-Shekh, which unites with 
the valley by which we had come about a mile west of the con- 
vent. P>om the point of this junction we went in an opposite 
direction to the base of the Ras Sufsafeh, the traditional place of 
the assembling of the Israelites. Here, they could touch the 
mountain and see what took place on its summit. Here it was 



Return to the Sea 



97 



that Moses descended and found the golden calf, which the 
people had set up as their God. Here, in his anger, he cast the 
tables of the law *' out of his hands and brake them beneath the 
mount." Various places, which tradition connects with Biblical 
history, were pointed out to us by the monk, among them, the 
hole in the rock which served as a mould for the casting of the 
** molten image." 

As we approached this point, I could see by looking up the 
face of the rocks almost directly over us, in the dizzy heights 
of the cliff, the place of my adventure of the previous day and 
the cleft in the rock, covered by the natural arch. Following 
the valley for some distance around the base of the mountain, 
we came to the rock of the "Miraculous Spring," the ''Rock of 
Horeb." It is a reddish granite block, about ten feet in height, 
that has been detached and lias fallen from the overhanging cliffs. 
Running through it diagonally is a vein of feldspar, in which 
are the horizontal crevices made by the rod when Moses smote 
it, and from which the water issued. Our knowledge of this 
miracle comes, as is said, through a Jewish tradition. The monks 
affirm that the rock accompanied the Israelites in their wan- 
derings and afterwards returned to its place at the foot of the 
"Holy Mountain." "For they drank of that spiritual rock tliat 
followed them: and that rock was Christ." ^ 

In this vicinity, as in several other places through which we 
had passed, there were many old Sinaitic inscriptions on the 
rocLs. Retracing our steps and dlscliarging our guide, we fol- 
lowed on the track of the pack-cameLs, overtaking them in the 
afternoon. We first traveled northeast and north Um miles, 
and then, turning to the west through the narrow pass of El 
Watiyeh, continued in that direction. 

We followed the same valley for nearly two days, constantly, 
but slowly, descending. There were generally mountains on 

1 I Cor. X, 4. 



98 Egyp^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

either side, some of them rising in precipitous, wild cliffs. Sacred 
places were pointed out, and occasionally there was a scanty 
vegetation. A considerable stream had been formed on the 
night of the storm, and the subsiding waters had left many 
slippery places. 

Camels are sure-footed and very rarely fall, either among the 
rocks or on the sandy desert; but where there is slipperiness, 
especially that slipperiness arising from the sediment of muddy 
waters, the feet of the camel often slide from under him, and he 
falls with startling quickness and great force. During the first 
two days of our return journey, we had some experiences of this 
kind, in which riders and packs were left in a ludicrous position 
in the mud. Poor corpulent Hassan, on one of these occasions, 
became very much mixed up in his roll, with camel, boxes and 
tent poles. 

We found a dry, sandy place for our camp and the next day 
at noon were approaching the oasis of Feran, situated in a deep 
valley with high mountains on either side. Here we passed 
through a section covered with the Tarfah (tamarisk), the manna- 
producing shrub, a few of the specimens of which were the size 
of small trees. They are found in no other place. Very small 
holes are bored by an insect in the bark of the twigs, whence 
issue, from March to June, drops of sap, which fall and harden 
in the sand, forming a gum. The monks at Sinai keep this gum 
for sale put up in small tin boxes. It is claimed that it has cer- 
tain medicinal qualities. 

It was not much after midday when we arrived at Feran. I 
had heard and read much concerning the fertility of this oasis 
and anticipated finding a real Eden, but was much disappointed. 
Though our visit was at the end of a long, dry season and not 
at a time to see it in its verdure, I was inclined to believe that 
its reputation arose chiefly from its contrast with the surround- 
ing deserts. 



Return to the Sea 



99 



An oasis, however small the green spot, even a single palm or 
a tuft of grasses, is ever welcome to the thirsty traveler. By 
this he knows he is in the vicinity of water, and even the odor of 
vegetation is to him a real joy. 

Travelers in Palestine have often wondered that such a dry, 
rough, rugged, rocky and what to us would be a barren land, 
should ever have been called a ''land of milk and honey." Some 
writers have ventured the opinion that the country was formerly 
more fertile than at present. It was undoubtedly better culti- 
vated at some periods than at others, but, from its physical 
condition, it could not have been naturally more productive 
in the olden time than to-day. Whatever was obtained from 
the soil, except scanty pasturage, was then, as now, the result 
of much labor and, in many places, of artificial irrigation. All 
things are relative; and, to the thirsty wanderers of the deserts, 
to a whole generation who had never breathed other than the 
desert air, whose eyes had never rested upon fertile, green fields, 
it was in reality "' a land flowing with milk and honey." 

When in Palestine, I visited the Jordan, and stood upon its 
banks at the point where the Israelites are supposed to have 
entered the country. The river, as I saw it in the month of 
April, the ''harvest time" of the Bible, was a swollen, angry 
stream and could not have been forded, or otherwise easily 
crossed. Recalling the Biblical narrative, I could readily under- 
stand how this people, as they appeared on the high eastern 
bank of the river, and looked across the broad valley upon the 
walls of Jericho, at the foot of the bluff lands on the other side, 
and, beyond, upon the green hills of Judea, must have felt that 
they were about to enter upon the fulfilment of the long deferred 
promise of Jehovah. 

To them, the land when possessed was a real fulfilment of this 
promise, both figuratively and literally. Figuratively, it was 
all that their imaginations could have pictured. Literally, it was 



loo Egypt and its Betrayal 

a ^'land of milk and honey." The hills and valleys furnished 
pasturage for their flocks and herds, and thus gave them milk, of 
which they could have had very httle on the desert. In the 
rocky ledges of the country were many wild bees to furnish 
them with honey. With their habits and their ideas of luxurious 
living, what more could they have asked? It was to them a very 
paradise. 

One has only to pass a few days upon the desert to under- 
stand the real joy with which they entered upon their promised 
inheritance. It will be remembered that the manna ceased the 
day after they crossed the Jordan and, perhaps, this people, a 
whole generation of which had been born and reared on the 
desert, ate then for the first time of grown products, the ^'old 
corn" of the land. 

Feran is considered a large oasis, but there are not over two 
hundred acres of land that can be cultivated. It is a deep, narrow 
valley, three hundred yards wide, with high mountains on either 
side and a perennial brook running through it and then dis- 
appearing among the rocks. This brook, at the time of the very 
rare, heavy winter rains, has its source at the base of Mt. Sinai, 
and follows the route by which we had come, sometimes flooding 
the valley for a few hours. At other times, whatever water there 
is rises about five miles from the place at which it disappears. 
The rain is not sufficiently frequent to be of any importance in 
the cultivation of the land, which is irrigated by water dipped or 
drawn by shadufs from the stream. There are in the valley a 
large number of palm-trees, which produce an excellent qual- 
ity of dates, many of them being owned, as I have stated, by 
wandering Arabs, who only occasionally come to Feran. 

We saw at this place an Arab, assisted by his wife, weaving 
tent cloth in the most primitive manner. The piece when fin- 
ished would not be more than ten or twelve feet in length. The 
warp was fastened, at each end, to small stakes or pins driven 



Return to the Sea loi 

into the ground. The filling was wound on a stick and passed 
between the threads of the warp, which were separated by a rude 
harness moved by the hand, after the putting in of each thread 
of the filling. The filling was drawn together with a hook made 
of bone. 

There were at Feran a few hovels and a number of Bedouin 
tents. We tried to buy a lamb, or some chickens, but were un- 
able to obtain anything in the way of food. One Arab woman 
said she had a chicken she would sell, but on searching she was 
unable to find it. 

The surrounding scenery is indescribably grand. The barren, 
naked mountains with their never ending variety of rock forma- 
tions, the lofty pinnacles of the elongated summit of Mt. Serbal 
apparently almost overhanging the narrow valley, though several 
miles distant, present a scene, the picturesqueness and grandeur 
of which are not surpassed at Mt. Sinai. The rocks were mostly 
composed of beautiful red granite and gray gneiss, with numer- 
ous veins of porphyry of nearly every color (green, black, flesh 
tint, blood-red) glistening with crystals of quartz, abbite and 
other minerals. 

There are in this vicinity many ruins of ancient convents and 
numerous inscriptions on the rocks. This arises from the fact 
that Mt. Serbal was originally believed to be the Sinai of the 
Bible. Until the fifth century, the oasis of Feran was the central 
place of influence in the Christian Church on the Sinai peninsula 
and the seat of an Episcopal see. Hermit cells were nowhere 
more numerous than about these mountains. 

Feran was the city of the Amalekites, and it is claimed that it 
was in this valley that they fought the people of Moses. They 
came out to meet the hordes of Israel in defense of this little spot 
of tillable land and its never failing water, in the midst of their 
mountain deserts. 

Oases are often called islands of the desert. They do not re- 



I02 Egypt and its Betrayal 

semble islands in the sense of rising above the surrounding 
deserts, as islands rise above the waters. They are always in a 
valley, or in a deep depression in the desert, where there is suffi- 
cient moisture to sustain the date-palm, which, when the soil 
permits, sends its roots down twenty and thirty feet in search 
of aliment; and where water can be obtained sufficient to water 
flocks and irrigate a small piece of land. Sometimes, the water 
is taken from wells, often very deep, sometimes from springs, 
and occasionally from streams running a short distance and 
then disappearing as at Feran. 

Neither are deserts what might be inferred from the definition, 
"vast sandy plains," that has often been given of the word. 
They generally consist of hills and valleys, high rolling table- 
lands, deep gorges, and lofty mountain ranges. They are deserts 
simply because in these regions there is no rain, or not sufficient 
to sustain vegetation. 

To plainly understand what they are, it is only necessary to 
consider what the condition of our own country would be with- 
out rain. Should there be no rain for a number of years, all 
vegetation would cease. The springs and the streams, even the 
great rivers, would be dried up. All vegetable matter would 
disappear. The mountain tops would become denuded. The 
naked rock of the mountains, the bowlders and pebbles of the 
valley and plain would be blackened, or assume a dark brown 
color, from the effect of the constantly burning rays of the sun. 
Only in sandy regions would there be drifting sands, but every- 
where there would be treeless, barren, desert wastes. 

Dr. Schweinfurth, a great traveler, who has spent years on 
the deserts of northeastern and Central Africa in his favorite 
study of the botany of desert plants, informed me that he had 
never seen a ''vast sandy plain." There are such plains, how- 
ever, south of Algiers. 

Having passed a few hours at Feran, we continued our journey 



Return to the Sea 103 

a short distance and camped near El-Hesweh, the name given to 
the first cultivated spot met in approaching Feran from the west. 
The next afternoon we reached the ancient turquoise mines of 
Magharah, in the Wadi Magharah, the Valley of the Cave. We 
had traveled during the day in deep, wild, desolate valleys, 
with numerous interesting rock formations, of various colors, 
and often of fantastic forms. In some places, the precipitate 
sides of the mountains were seamed in such a manner as to pre- 
sent the appearance of dilapidated walls, ready to fall. 

Our only relief, during the day's journey, from the wild soli- 
tude of these desolate mountains and valleys was two Arab tents. 
Here, we tried again without success to buy a lamb. The Arabs 
claimed to have been visited the night before by a leopard, which 
had carried off a small goat. 

The mines of Magharah are not now worked. We did not 
find a hovel, a tent, or a living being in this once busy place. 
From hieroglyphic inscriptions on the rocks, it appears that 
the mines were worked by the Pharaohs six thousand years ago. 
The oldest inscriptions are those of Snofru, who was the first 
great king of the Fourth Dynasty, and of Cheops, the builder of 
the Great Pyramid. Subsequent Pharaohs continued or, from 
time to time, renewed the work for twenty-five hundred years. 
The extensive heaps of rubble and the shafts indicate a large 
amount of mining. 

Condemned criminals, slaves and prisoners of war were com- 
pelled to work here and the treasures were taken to Memphis 
and Thebes to enrich or adorn the Pharaohs and their favorites. 

The rock is partly granite and partly brick-red sandstone. In 
the red sandstone are many small turquoises, mostly soft and 
of little value, but occasionally small hard crystals are found 
which prove, when the crust is scaled off, to be beautiful bright 
blue turquoises of fine quality. They are easily detached from 
the rock with a knife. I saw many blue spots, but all the tur- 



I04 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

quoises I examined were soft and worthless, except for cabinet 
purposes. 

That night, we camped not far from the mines. Some Arabs, 
old men, came to our tents with turquoises, and I bought what 
they had that appeared to be of any value. Among them were 
several pieces which I afterwards had cut and which proved to 
be fine specimens. They were set and worn as ornaments, and 
are highly prized in the family as souvenirs. There has been 
no change in their beautiful, deep-blue color. The others I 
placed in my cabinet of minerals. Copper and malachite were 
also successfully mined in this place and carried to Egypt during 
the time of the Pharaohs. There are on the rocks here, besides 
the Egyptian inscriptions, many Sinaitic inscriptions, similar 
to those found elsewhere on the peninsula. There are also, in 
the vicinity, ruins of ancient origin in which tools made of flint 
have been found. 

The next morning, we continued our journey to the sea in a 
slightly ascending valley enclosed by rocks of red granite. There 
had been no rain since the terrible storm on the mountain, the 
night of our arrival at Sinai. We were about twelve hundred 
feet above the sea, the weather was pleasant, warm during the 
day, and not disagreeable in the camp at night. It was about 
ten in the forenoon, when we arrived at a commanding summit 
and suddenly had before us the wild pass of Nugb et-Buderah 
(Pass of the Sword's Point), through which we were to descend 
to the sea and, beyond, in the far distance to the north, Ras 
Abu Zenimeh, where we expected to find our boat. We tried 
to extend our vision so as to see it, but could only perceive the 
low sandy point stretching far into the sea. Two hours of de- 
scent would bring us to a sandy and stony plain near the sea. 
Two hours on this plain, and two hours more along the sandy 
beach of the coast and we should be at our objective point. 

On our descent toward the sea we witnessed a new series of 



Return to the Sea 105 



geological formations of the most interesting character. We had 
left the granite region, and the pass we were in was of variegated 
sandstone. The descent was rapid and, as we passed from valley 
to valley, we had a series of views of rocks of fantastic forms and 
colors. 

At some period, probably when the granite mountains of the 
Sinai group were thrown up from the furnaces of the earth, 
broad fissures, ten, fifteen, twenty and more feet wide, were 
opened in the primitive rock of this region. These were filled 
with melted lava, which, when it cooled, formed various kinds 
of igneous rock. Much of it, blackened by the sun, resembles 
volcanic slag. These formations generally run north and south 
and are harder than the sandstone. In the course of time the 
latter has been worn away, leaving the more enduring rock stand- 
ing in relief. These projecting veins are sometimes twenty and 
thirty feet high. They run for miles, as far as the vision can reach, 
into and across the valleys and over low rounded mountains, 
appearing precisely like massive walls. There were not only 
two or three, but a great number of these formations. In places, 
they took the form of castles and battlements, and it was 
difficult not to believe we had in view some gigantic works of 
man. 

There were also cliffs and pinnacles of grotesque form, and rocks 
of a great variety of colors. These colors, which are often bril- 
liant and beautiful, have been produced by the mineral sub- 
stances contained in the sandstone and by the different degrees 
of heat to which it has been subjected. The fact that rocks 
of such varied characteristics, composition, form and color, and 
of such vast extent, are all naked, makes this region a field of 
rare interest to the practical geologist and of enchantment to 
the traveler. The same facilities for observation and study 
exist in nearly all the mountainous districts of this peninsula. 

Our file of camels, ten in number, accompanied by the same 



io6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

number of cameleers 6n foot, moved slowly down the mountain 
passes, across the sandy and rocky plain, along the coast, and, 
just as the sun was about to disappear behind the mountains on 
the western side of the sea, we reached Ras Abu Zenimeh. Here, 
our boat was anchored and the Arab sailors were awaiting our 
arrival. This is the traditional point of the encampment of the 
IsraeHtes ''by the sea." ^ 

A hasty council was held to determine whether we should con- 
tinue by camels, four days, to Suez, or take the boat. The wind 
had continued in the north, and the sailors had been eight days 
in reaching this place. But the captain informed us that there 
were generally land breezes at night and that, in his opinion, we 
could reach Suez sooner by boat than by camels. There was not 
a house, perhaps not a tent and, at that season of the year, no 
palatable water in the whole distance. It was a monotonous 
wearisome route along the coast, to be avoided if possible, and 
we determined to again trust ourselves to the sea and our Arab 
sailors. 

The cameleers, having unloaded their camels and received 
their pay, immediately departed for their desert homes, and in a 
few minutes disappeared into the darkness that had already 
closed around us. The fire had been prepared, and after dinner 
we went on board with our effects and set sail. The sea was not 
rough and the weather was apparently propitious, but as soon 
as we passed beyond the point we found a strong north wind and 
waves sufficiently high to make it exceedingly disagreeable in 
our small open boat. 

We continued across the sea, sailing into the wind as much as 
possible, till about two in the morning when, being near the 
western shore, we tacked and headed northeastward, expecting 
to be able to run behind a point ten miles north of that from 
which we had sailed. 

1 Numbers, XXIII, 10. 



Return to the Sea 107 

We buffeted the waves, tossed and rolled all night with the 
spray and water coming into our boat and over us and found 
ourselves at dawn some distance south of our intended haven, 
near a wall of high rocks, where there was no approach to the 
shore. The wind grew stronger as the morning advanced and 
we had no other alternative but to run before it. 

In time for a late breakfast we rounded the point and anchored 
at the place whence we had set sail the previous evening. Had 
our camels then been within reach, we should have abandoned 
the sea and re-embarked on the "ships of the desert." 

At the end of three more days and nights, after various ex- 
periences with the winds and waves, we arrived at Suez. Modern 
rigged vessels would have had little difficulty in beating against 
the wind where there was such an amount of sea room; but with 
a bark belonging to the period of St. Paul the task was not an 
easy one. 

Although we arrived safely and without having to be put upon 
short rations, we unanimously decided that we would not again 
undertake a voyage on the Red Sea in an open Arab boat. The 
trip to Sinai, as a whole, had been most enjoyable and instruc- 
tive. We had had sufficient desert travel to learn the character 
of these vast wastes, and something of the mode of life of their 
nomadic inhabitants. 

We had seen nothing of that wild, savage life on the desert, 
which has often been the theme of romance and of travelers 
who delight in recounting marvelous tales. In fact the reckless, 
lawless Arab exists principally in books. I have been assured 
by those who have made extensive desert excursions and who 
have lived with Arabs for months at a time, alone or accom- 
panied by only a single servant, that they were in no more 
danger than that to which they would have been subject in 
European countries. They added that they never made a dis- 
play of dress nor of money that would excite cupidity, as there 



io8 Egypt and its Betrayal 

were bad Arabs, as well as bad Christians, who might be tempted 
to rob or steal. 

There are occasional tribal wars to avenge thefts and other 
wrongs, and in certain localities there are marauding bands, 
who live by plundering peaceable Arabs and strangers if they 
happen to meet them unprotected. These, however, are the 
exceptions; and even these are no worse than our western high- 
way robbers and are quite as merciful as the burglars of our 
eastern cities. 

Generally speaking, the Arabs are a quiet, timid people, living 
in extreme poverty, in a state of semi-starvation. Like hungry 
dogs, they seize with avidity the smallest crust or bone left on 
the sands by the traveler. A full meal is to them a rare joy. 

The five thousand Arabs of the peninsula of Sinai would 
scarcely be able to live by the cultivation of every acre of land 
that can be irrigated by the water of a brook, spring or well, and 
by the products of such animals as can be kept in the mountains, 
were it not for the food brought from Egypt. This consists of 
beans and dura (sorghum vulgare), sometimes called Egyptian 
maize. 

The question arises, how the Israelites were sustained during 
their sojourn in this country, if it was not by food miraculously 
furnished. There is no evidence that the physical conditions of 
the country have materially changed during the last five thou- 
sand years. Arabia is, and for an indefinite period must have 
been, a land of rock, gravel and sand, without sufficient rain to 
make it other than a continuous desert. According to the Bibli- 
cal account, the Israelites numbered over two millions. It is 
difficult to understand how even a himdredth part of this num- 
ber could have subsisted upon the products of the country. 
During the dry season, the supply of water for so great a body 
of people would certainly have been wholly inadequate. If even 
two thousand people should to-day enter the peninsula, and be 



Return to the Sea 109 

cut off from supplies from Egypt and other outside countries, 
as the Israelites were, it is probable that the greater part of them 
would die of starvation. For those who do not adopt the con- 
clusion of the interposition of Providence, the whole question 
of the Exodus is still involved in mystery. 



no Egypt and its Betrayal 



CHAPTER XI 

LAKE MENZALEH, PARADISE OF AQUATIC BIRDS 

It was in the heat of summer, the last of May, that I undertook 
a long delayed trip by the way of Lake Menzaleh to San, the site 
of the Zoan of the Bible and the Tanis of the Greeks. It is a 
trip rarely made by travelers on account of the time required and 
the difficulties of reaching this out-of-the-way place. There were 
a number of routes, all of which required an outfit of tents, pro- 
visions, an interpreter and camels or boats. I chose the route 
via Mansiirah, Damietta and Lake Menzaleh. I went from 
Alexandria to Mansurah, about one hundred and fifty miles, by 
railway. This route, for nearly two-thirds of the distance, as 
far as Tantah, is the same as that to Cairo. From Tantah to 
Mansurah it passes through a section of the richest lands in 
Egypt. 

It was at the time of the low Nile and the country, except 
where recently irrigated, was parched by the dry, hot, south 
winds and the tropical sun. Clouds of dust accompanied every 
moving train. The cars were in such a state of dilapidation that, 
with the windows as closely shut as possible, there was no want 
of ventilation and after a few hours' ride it was difficult to deter- 
mine the natural color of the traveler. Notwithstanding this 
annoyance and the flies, which are an ever present plague, and 
divers other tormenting insects, there is always the greatest 
pleasure in traveling by railway in this unique country. The 
landscape is a continuous plain, but in the foreground are con- 



Lake Menzaleh 



III 



stantly varying scenes of Egyptian peasant life that never lose 
their enchantment. 

It was nearly sunset when I arrived at Mansurah, wearied by 
the heat and dust and by constantly viewing the panorama of 
the day. The station was on the opposite side of the river from 
the city. The only way of crossing was by a small boat, although 
as early as the thirteenth century, at the time of the crusades, 
there was a fortified bridge at this place. I found comfortable 
lodgings at the house of the U. S. Consular Agent, Mr. Ibrahim 
Doud. 

Mansurah, though a city of thirty thousand inhabitants, then 
had no hotel. It is on the right bank of the Damietta branch 
of the Nile and sixty miles from its mouth. It is a town of medi- 
aeval origin, historically noted for being the scene of one of the 
important battles of St. Louis (Louis IX) of France. It was here 
that this real hero of the Middle Ages gained at great sacrifice 
of life, in 1250, an important victory over the Saracens. The 
Crusaders were soon afterwards defeated at the same place and 
St. Louis taken prisoner. It is this Saracen victory that is said 
to have given to the place the name of Mansurah, " the victori- 
ous" or, as it has sometimes been rendered, ''field of victory." 

The next morning, a guide, tent, provisions and other articles 
necessary for the excursion were procured, the river recrossed 
and the journey continued by rail to Damietta, five miles from 
the sea and near Lake Menzaleh. 

Damietta, once a prosperous town and one of the principal 
seaports of Egypt, is now in its decay. 

Sand-bars have been formed at the mouth of the river to such 
an extent that only vessels of light draught can enter and its 
commerce has been principally transferred to Alexandria and 
Port Said. The numerous minarets and imposing domes of its 
mosques and the high buildings along the bank of the river still 
give to the city an appearance of much importance. The archi- 



112 Egypt and its Betrayal 

lecture of its crumbling buildings attests its former prosperity 
and wealth. It still has a population of about forty thousand 
and is visited annually by several hundred small vessels, many 
of which come from Greece and Syria. It has interesting and 
well-stocked bazaars and a lucrative, though limited, trade in 
the rice produced in that part of Egypt and the fish of the neigh- 
boring lake. 

I had now to obtain a boat, captain and sailors for a trip of 
forty miles on Lake Menzaleh. There was no scarcity of boats 
nor of men, but I knew by experience that much time would be 
required to arrange the details and get the expedition in motion. 
It was only by securing the kind offices of the Governor, by using 
much energy and tact and appealing to the authority of the 
faithful Hassan that a boat was ready late the next afternoon. 
In the meantime, I was provided with lodgings at the dwelling 
of one of the principal inhabitants. The tent, provisions, and a 
large yawl with its sails, to be used if needed, were put on board. 

When everything was apparently in readiness and I had em- 
barked, I saw a manifest indisposition on the part of the men to 
set the sails and depart. There was much loud talk and many 
menacing gestures, that would have appeared serious to anyone 
unacquainted with the character and habits of this people. I 
was simply informed that the men did not wish to leave until 
the next day, "bookra" (to-morrow). 

Never do to-day what can be put off till the morrow should be 
added to the catalogue of Egyptian proverbs. As is necessary 
in such cases, I simply insisted on sailing. After more loud talk 
and threatening gestures, as if to provoke a fight, the difficulty 
seemed suddenly settled and all came quietly aboard. The sails 
were quickly spread, and we soon saw the low, sandy shore and , 
the domes and minarets slowly receding. 

My company consisted of a native gentleman from Mansurah, 
who was acquainted with the country and spoke a little French, 



Lake Menzaleh 113 

a cook^ Hassan, the captain and four sailors. The latter were 
dressed like the common fellah. They were barefooted and 
barelegged, having, as an outer garment, the blue cotton shirt 
and on their heads the skullcap and turban. The captain had 
the distinction of a white shirt. The turban is made by taking 
about three yards of thin, slazy, white muslin, twisting it into 
a roll, and then winding it three times around the head over 
the skullcap and tucking the ends under the rolls in such a man- 
ner that it rests closely and firmly upon the head. This rather 
heavy but picturesque head-gear is the most important item 
in the fellah's dress, since it protects him from the injurious 
effects of the sun. It is the ordinary head-dress of the fellahin 
and I never learned, while in Egypt, of a case of sunstroke. 

The sun was near the western horizon when we sailed out upon 
the lake, southeasterly, with a strong southwesterly wind. In 
the evening it became quite dark and, as there were many low 
islands and shoal places, we anchored for the night. Soon after- 
wards, another vessel, of about the same size as the one I had 
taken, came alongside and also threw out her anchor. I then 
learned that the Governor had sent this boat to accompany us, 
of course, at my expense. I did not understand the necessity 
nor object of this additional vessel, but as the men proved to be 
very useful and the charges moderate, I made no complaint. 
The Governor, knowing the lake and the direction of the wind, 
had concluded that more men than we had might be needed and 
had wisely sent them. 

We were again under motion at the first light of dawn, about 
four o'clock, the next morning. There was still a strong southerly 
wind and the boats started off as if for a race. They were open 
boats of about thirty tons burden with flat bottoms for shallow 
water. Thev had immense lateen sails that gave them the ap- 
pearance in the distance of huge birds with sharply pointed 
wings flying over the surface of the lake. 



114 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

It was a beautiful morning with the cloudless sky of an Egyp- 
tian summer. The deep crimson that heralded the sun, the yel- 
low light that accompanied it and the clear soft atmosphere, 
free from the dust of the land, made this early morning sail most 
enjoyable. It was the more so because there were no waves, 
although the wind was sufficiently strong to have made an ugly 
sea, had the water been sufficiently deep to permit an under- 
current. 

The lake is very irregular in form, but is approximately forty 
miles in length and twenty broad and covers an area of from 
eight hundred to a thousand square miles. It is so shallow 
throughout its whole extent that it is said that one could wade 
from one side to the other were it not for the miry bottom. The 
depth of the water, as I saw it, was generally about three feet. 
For several miles from the shores it was nmch less, and generally 
very shallow. At the time of the high Nile it is somewhat deeper. 
Many of the low sand-islands then disappear and the narrow 
low sand-bar, forming the beach between the sea and the lake, 
is nearly submerged. 

The bottom of the lake is covered with a thick matting of 
coarse grass, which in many places grows to the height of a 
number of feet. There are some ancient ruins on the islands in 
the middle of the lake, and it is claimed that the larger part of 
the surface, now covered with water, was in ancient times, like 
the bed of Lake Mareotis, rich, highly cultivated land.^ 

In consequence of the shallow waters and grassy bottoms, a 
continued strong wind, instead of forming waves, moves the 
waters from one side or end of the lake to the other. The shallow 
waters near the windward shore disappear, and the shore line 
advances into the lake, returning again on the ceasing or chang- 
ing of the winds. The difference thus made in the position of 
the shore line is sometimes one or two miles. 

1 See Strabo, Book XVII, Par. 21, pp. 240, 241. 



Lake Menzaleh 115 

As we glided quietly but swiftly over the grassy waters, fish 
were constantly darting from under the bow of the boat, showing 
that they were very abundant. We passed between Matariyeh 
(situate upon a point of land projecting from the west many 
miles into the lake) and a group of islands opposite, on the east. 
Here we saw men wading in the water a long distance from shore 
and fishing with some kind of nets, their boats being anchored 
near by. 

Matariyeh is a town of fishermen. It is all fish and fishing. 
There is no other business. The occupation of the father has 
been transmitted to the son from generation to generation for 
centuries, perhaps from the earliest historic periods. These 
people, with others about the lake, form a race of fishermen. 
They have angular faces, high cheek bones, haughty mouths, 
small eyes and stocky forms, very different from the elegant, 
slender form which is the national Egyptian type. 

Egyptologists claim that they are of Semitic origin and some 
are of the opinion that they are the descendants of the Hyksos or 
Shepherds. This opinion is based upon a striking physiognomical 
resemblance between the ancient Hyksos, as shown by the 
Hyksos statues and other monuments found principally at San, 
and the modern race of Menzaleh fishermen. 

There is a saying in the vicinity, " once a fisherman, always a 
fisherman." There are about four thousand men thus employed. 
They know no other labor or business. By their situation and 
condition, they are as closely bound to this service as the Prus- 
sian peasants formerly were to that of the landed estates. 

The right of fishing in this lake is farmed out by the Govern- 
ment for about three hundred thousand dollars per annum. 
The contract formerly included the forced services of the fisher- 
men at a stipulated small percentage on the money realized from 
the sale of the fish. It may now be claimed that this labor is 
not "forced," but these fishermen are compelled to continue the 



ii6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

same occupation, on the former basis of percentage, to sustain 
their miserable existence. 

The right of fishing in most of the other waters of Egypt is 
also farmed out for sums varying according to the amount of 
fish that can be taken. If fish are caught at any place where 
there is no such contract, they must be taken immediately to 
the proper authorities and a tax, amounting to a large percent- 
age of the value, paid to the Government. 

Lake Menzaleh is not solely celebrated for its fish. It is the 
true paradise of the hunter. It fairly swarms with water-fowl 
of many species. Thej^ are so numerous that it is difficult to 
make even an approximate estimate of their quantity. This 
lake is the first inland water reached by them, in their journey 
from the north across the Mediterranean or along its eastern 
extremity. The mild climate, shallow waters, abundance of fish 
and other means of subsistence, make it an agreeable winter 
home for all kinds of aquatic fowl, and many remain through 
the entire year. 

Tall wading birds — the flamingo, with its fire-red plumage, 
the snow-white spoonbill, the heron, the stork and the crane — 
indicate by their presence the more shallow waters. The great 
Dalmatian and other pelicans, the Egyptian goose, the large 
white-footed goose and the graceful white swan float majestic- 
ally among the smaller birds in the deeper parts. Legions of 
different varieties of ducks are to be found in almost every part 
of the lake. 

A competent authority says that the aquatic fowl of this lake 
consume daily not less than sixty thousand pounds of fish, be- 
sides their other food. They are so abundant that, during the 
winter and until May, the water in many places is literally 
covered with them. In the distance, they have the appearance 
of low islands and, when they rise in mass, they fill the air and 
cover the sky like clouds. 



Lake Menzaleh 117 

Many years ago myriads of pigeons nested in the great forests 
of northern New York. Every morning, as they flew away for 
food, the sky was clouded for one or two hours by their passage 
and the same thing happened on their return at night. I have 
seen on a small lake just east of the city of Mexico, near the rail- 
way running to Pueblo and Vera Cruz, ducks in such numbers 
that they apparently covered the waters for some distance. 

The gathering of large numbers of birds in uninhabited regions 
is not uncommon. On Lake Menzaleh, this tendency of the 
feathered tribes has a most remarkable illustration. By reason 
of their number, their variety and the beauty of their plumage, 
the birds of this lake afford a spectacle that is not only unique 
but that is unsurpassed in ornithological interest. Each group 
of these many legions has its leader, whose every movement is 
watched and followed. No bird rises from the water as long as 
the leader remains undisturbed. The moment he spreads his 
wings and utters a cry, the whole flock mounts into the air. 

The right of fowling, like that of fishing, is farmed out and 
shooting from a boat is prohibited, but permission to hunt can 
generally be obtained by foreigners. The fishermen are employed 
in catching the fowl in nets and in various other ways, and great 
numbers are secured. 

One of the primiitive and very curious modes of capture is as 
follows: 

The native arranges for his head a casque, entirely covering it, 
in the form of a fowl. This is sometimes made from the rind of 
a water-melon. vSelecting a light night, usually when there is a 
full moon, and a favorable place, he puts himself wholly under 
water, except the head which is concealed by the casque. 
Through an aperture, he determines which is the leader of the 
flock, and approaches him so skilfully that he is able to seize 
him by the legs, draw him into the water and kill him. If this is 
done with sufficient celerity and skill to prevent the bird from 



1 1 8 Egypt and its Betrayal 

screeching, the whole flock can be taken, one after another, in 
the same manner; but on the least screech from the leader, the 
others quickly take to their wings. ^ 

Wild boars of large size and buffaloes are sometimes found in 
the adjoining marshes. 

We had been sailing swiftly all the morning, being obliged to 
tack occasionally, as our course, after passing Matariyeh, was 
southward and almost directly against the wind. The water had 
for some time been growing shallower, and about ten o'clock we 
ran aground. We were still several miles from the marshy shore 
and from the entrance to the old bed of the Tanitic branch of the 
Nile up which we w^ere to sail a number of miles. Through 
Hassan I inquired what was to be done, and received the answer, 
'* Wait for the wind to change." This was not very encouraging, 
as the wind at this season of the year sometimes blows from the 
south for many days in succession. To wait for a north wind 
might mean to remain where we were for ten days. Nor did I 
then understand how this change could aid us. 

Perhaps the phenomenon, which to the natives of the lake had 
always been an almost daily occurrence, was considered too 
simple and well known to need an explanation. If you ask this 
class of Arabs for facts or explanations, you rarely get correct 
answers. There is no bad motive. They simply give you with 
Oriental politeness such an answer as they think will please. I 
made it known to the captain that I must be at Alexandria at a 
certain date and suggested that he should try to work the boat 
to the west, where I thought there was deeper water. 

A sailor, with the end of a long rope in his hand and a short, 

* This mode of capture seemed to the writer incredible, but it was affirmed 
at the time of his visit to the lake that it was practiced with great success, 
where the birds were in the habit of collecting for the night at a point having 
water sufficiently deep. This manner of securing birds is also confirmed by 
writers and by a recent letter received by the author from an English clergy- 
man, residing at Port Said. 



Lake Menzaleh 119 

light pole, went over the low bow into the water. He went for- 
ward a few rods, pulling the rope after him, thrust the pole into 
the soft bottom and tied the rope to it close to the ground. While 
he remained holding the pole in place, the men on board pulled 
at the other end of the rope, slowly moving the boat forward over 
the grassy bottom to near the place of the pole. The man then 
went forward again with the rope and the process was repeated, 
but little progress was made. 

The second boat had left us at an early hour in the morning 
and gone to Matariyeh for bread for the sailors, the w^ant of 
which, as I then learned, was the cause of the angry discussion 
at the time of our departure. At about eleven o'clock, this boat 
came over towards us, but further to the west, where I had 
supposed there was deeper water. When it arrived at a point 
opposite the one where we had first touched bottom, it also 
grounded. The men threw out their anchor, took in their 
sails, and, with their sacks of bread, came over to our boat. 
No miracle was necessary to enable them to walk on the 
waters. 

With this additional force we moved a little faster. At a little 
after noon, the men all came on board to take their luncheon of 
coarse, dry bread. We were apparently still two miles from 
shore. After finishing their meal, they seemed in no hurry to 
recommence their work. It was nearly two o'clock and we had 
probably not advanced more than a mile since running aground 
at ten. The wind had entirely ceased before noon. Suddenly a 
light breeze came from the north. Gradually, it grew stronger. 
It was apparently an ordinary day sea-breeze that had come thus 
far inland across the lake — about twenty miles. The sails were 
set, the men went into the water, four on each side, and put their 
shoulders to the boat. The sails filled and, by wind and man- 
power, we commenced to move. We advanced very slowly at 
first, but the wind increased and, within half an hour, the men. 



I20 Egypt and its Betrayal 

one after another, mounted into the boat and we were soon under 
fair motion. 

In a short time we had entered the old, narrow, tortuous bed 
of the river and were sailing up it at good speed. The water was 
shallow and the banks so low and flat that the waves from our 
boat washed for some distance over the marshy lands. It was 
not long before we were aground again. The help of eight strong 
shoulders and a brisk north wind carried us over the shoal, but 
we very soon found the water too shallow to proceed farther with 
the large boat. The yawl was taken out, the tent and provisions 
were placed therein and, with sails set, we pursued our way up 
the bed of the stream. 

At about sunset, we came to a barrier— a heavy embankment 
built across the old river bed to retain for irrigation, during the 
dry season, the water that drained from the canals. There was 
but little water above the embankment, and none could pass 
either way. We pitched our tent and prepared our dinner. 



Ancient Zoan 121 



CHAPTER XII 



ANCIENT ZOAN 



We started for San at early dawn the next morning with don- 
keys procured in a neighboring village. It was a ride of only two 
hours. The country was low and marshy and, at the time of the 
high Nile, flooded. These marshy lands are mostly unfit for 
cultivation, but produce tall grasses which are of some value 
since they constitute the only perennial pasturage in Egypt. 

The papyrus, once produced in this section in great abundance, 
has now entirely disappeared. Like its contemporaries, the 
crocodile and the hippopotamus, it has withdrawn from Egypt 
to the banks of the Blue and White Nile. 

The manufacture of papyrus was for a long period of great 
importance to Egypt. Commencing early in the reign of the 
Pharaohs, it continued till the time of the Khalifs. During the 
Greek and Roman period, Egypt supplied this invaluable article 
to the whole civilized world and derived from it immense reve- 
nues. The rich, wet lands of the Delta, which were once covered 
with this plant, as with a thicket, are now largely devoted to the 
culture of rice, indigo and cotton. As a remembrance, we have 
derived from papyrus our word ''paper" and from the Greek 
form, bihlos, our word " Bible." 

Papyrus served for many other purposes than that of making 
the paper on which the ancients wrote. It was used for calking 
their vessels and for sails ^ and rope. The Egyptians, in con- 

1 Herodotus II, Sec. 96. 



12 2 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

structing the bridge across the Hellespont for the army of Xerxes, 
used papyrus cables.^ When the storm had broken these and 
the white flax cables of the Phoenicians, another bridge was con- 
structed of boats. Over these, cables were stretched from shore 
to shore, seven-eighths of a mile, each cable being made of two 
ropes of white flax and four of papyrus. On these cables, sup- 
ported by the boats, was constructed the road on which Xerxes' 
army of seventeen hundred thousand crossed the Hellespont 
into Europe in seven days and nights.^ The lower part of the 
papyrus plant was also used for food.^ 

The sites of the ancient cities of the Delta are marked by 
mounds of earth which rise above the surrounding country, 
sometimes to the height of thirty and forty feet, and which are 
filled with the potsherds of the successive generations that have 
inhabited these places. 

The mounds of ancient Zoan, or Tanis, are remarkable for 
their comparative height and extent, covering as they do about 
a square mile. Excavations have been made and many valu- 
able monuments secured. The most important, historically, 
are those of the Hyksos, the Shepherd Kings. The grounds 
where the excavations have been made, on the site of the great 
temple, are encircled with mounds twenty and thirty feet in 
height. 

The enclosures of the temple were once surrounded by a wall 
thirty-four hundred feet in length, seventy feet in thickness and 
forty-five feet in height. Looking down upon the open space we 
now see a confused mass of ruins, large numbers of broken pieces 
of obelisks, columns, statues, pedestals, and parts of fallen walls. 
These ruins are mostly of red granite. There are some blocks 
that are black or of a very dark color. There is also an occa- 
sional piece of sandstone, but the lime-rock of which the temple 

1 Herodotus VII, Sec. 34. 2 Herodotus VII, Sec. 36. 

^ Herodotus II, Sec. 92. 



Ancient Zoan 123 

was mainly built long since found its way to the rude, native 
lime-kiln. 

No city is surrounded with more historical mystery than an- 
cient Zoan. It was the capital of lower Egypt during the long 
reign of the Hyksos, or Shepherd Kings, more correctly '' Kings 
of the Wanderers." After they had been driven out or subdued, 
the whole of Egypt was again united under one government. 
Still later, the great kings of the nineteenth dynasty, Seti (Se- 
thos), his son Ramses II (Sesostris), and his grandson, Seti 
Mineptah, the supposed "Pharaoh of the Exodus," made Zoan 
one of their capitals, the other being at Thebes. 

It was situated upon the Tanitic branch of the Nile, and in the 
northeastern part of Egypt, not far from the eastern boundary. 
In consequence of its position, it became a great commercial 
city. It was also the rendezvous and starting point of the great 
military expeditions that went out from Egypt in those days 
and overran western Asia, bringing back as a result of their con- 
quests, or as annual tribute, immense riches in slaves, ivory, gold, 
silver, precious stones and domestic animals. 

It was an important city with numerous monuments during 
the reign of the Hyksos. In the time of Ramses II, it had its 
magnificent temple, its obelisks of granite and many other 
colossal structures of the same material. There were no less than 
ten obelisks on the sides of the avenue leading to the great 
temple. A number of these, now broken, and mutilated columns 
and statues are lying upon the ground where they once stood. 
Other relics of Zoan, among them statues and sphinxes, in a good 
state of preservation, are now to be seen at Cairo or in the mu- 
seums of Europe. 

Even in the remote period of the nineteenth dynasty, Zoan 
was already an ancient town, over two thousand years old. Its 
temple, rebuilt by Ramses II, dates back at least to the sixth 
dynasty, thirty-three hundred years before Christ. The town 



124 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

must have been founded soon after the reputed time of the flood, 
and the numerous Biblical references to it increase, for all Chris- 
tian people, its historic interest. 

''Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt." ^ 
" Marvelous things did he in the sight of their fathers in the land 
of Egypt, in the field of Zoan." ^ '' How he had wrought his signs 
in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan." ^ ''The princes 
of Zoan are become fools." ^ ''For the princes were in Zoan." * 
" I will make Pathros desolate, and will set fire in Zoan." ^ 

The Land of Goshen, also called the Land of Ramses,^ was 
the habitation of Joseph's brothers and of their descendants. 
They were a pastoral people and it is probable that Joseph had 
Goshen selected for their occupation on account of its adapta- 
tion to their mode of life and, also, because it could be occupied 
without creating animosities on the part of the Egyptians, to 
whom "every shepherd was an abomination." ^ 

There has been much discussion as to the precise location of 
the Land of Goshen, the habitation of the Israelites during their 
sojourn in Egypt. Those who still adhere to the theory of their 
actual passage through what is now a part of the Red Sea, locate 
that part of Egypt occupied by them as far south as possible, 
while others place it in the extreme northwestern part of the 
country. 

It is probable, from all the monumental and philological evi- 
dence, that, when their numbers had become great, they occupied 
the larger portion of all the territory lying in the northern part 
of the Delta and east of the Tanitic branch of the Nile. This 
territory included much of the most productive land of Egypt, 
and was sufficient in extent to have sustained a million of people. 

1 Numbers XIII, 22. 2 Psalms LXXVIII, 12. 

3 Id. 43. * Isaiah XIX, 13. 

5 Id. XXX, 4. ^ Ezekiel XXX, 14. 

7 Gen. XLVII, 11. « Gen. XLVI, 34. 



Ancient Zoan 125 

A large part of this land, once highly cultivated, is now desert 
and marsh. 

In the section bordering on Lake Menzaleh, there was much 
low, wet land producing an abundance of coarse grasses on which 
cattle could feed. On the east, it was bounded by the desert, 
which produced in many places, during the winter season, plants 
sufficient to sustain a limited number of sheep and goats. 

Jacob's descendants, ''besides his sons' wives," at the time 
they came to Egypt, numbered only ''three score and six." A 
small parcel of good land bordering on the desert, where they 
could pitch their tents like the Arabs of the present day, sup- 
plemented by a portion of the wet lands near the lake, was for 
them the most desirable selection — a very garden, in fact, in 
comparison with the rough, rocky country from which they had 
emigrated. It was well adapted to their shepherd-life and to the 
maintenance of the "flocks and herds" they had brought with 
them, but was not considered as desirable by the Egyptians. 

Zoan, if not actually in the Land of Goshen, was on its border 
and was the principal city of that part of the Delta. Ramses II 
also gave to it his name, as appears from hieroglyphic inscriptions 
on monuments found in its ruins. It is this monarch who is re- 
garded as having been the most severe of all the Pharaohs in his 
treatment of the Israelites and Zoan must have been one of the 
principal scenes of this oppression. "Therefore they did set over 
them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they 
built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Ramses." ^ 

A large portion of the monuments of Zoan were erected during 
the reign of Ramses II. The immense granite blocks required in 
this work were cut with rude tools from the quarries of Assuan, 
transported seven hundred miles, worked, polished and placed 
in position by the prisoners and bondsmen of Egypt. 

There can be little doubt that the Israelites were employed in 

1 Ex. I, n. 



126 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

these and a great number of similar works, as well as in lower 
grades of labor. They went out of the country imderstanding 
the art of sculpture-writing, as it was then practiced in Egypt, 
and were thus capable of recording the laws of Moses on " tablets 
of stone." Tablets of the same character, belonging to the same 
period, may now be seen in large numbers in the museum at 
Cairo. 

They were also filled ''with the wisdom, the understanding, 
and the knowledge of all kinds of workmanship" known to the 
Egyptians, 'Ho devise cunning works, to work in gold and in 
silver, and in brass, and in cutting of stones to set them and in 
carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship." * 
Hence they were able to execute the marvelous works required 
in the building of the tabernacle and those of its elaborate and 
skilfully wrought furnishings. 

As we look upon the broken monuments still at San, on the 
better preserved ones in the museum of Cairo or upon the other 
numerous magnificent works of that period, we imagine that 
we see, in the grandeur of their forms and in the elegance of their 
execution, the skill and handiwork of the Semitic races and the 
result of the toil required by Pharaoh's taskmasters. 

Zoan was the capital of that part of Egypt ruled by the Hyksos 
at the time of Joseph and, probably, that city was his residence 
during the time he served the Pharaoh of that day. If so, it 
was there that he " made ready his chariot, and went up to meet 
Israel, his father," ^ on the great highway leading to Syria; and 
there that, on his return, he presented his father to the great 
monarch. 

It was "in the field of Zoan" that the Pharaoh of the Exodus, 

as a sequel to his and his father's acts of oppression, saw the 

wonderful works of the God of the Hebrews. It was here that 

the oppressed people gathered for their journey. It was here 

1 Ex. XXXI, 4, 5. 2 Qen XLYt, 29. 



Ancient Zoan 127 

that Pharaoh manifested his weakness, giving his consent for 
the departure, when frightened by the execution of Jehovah's 
judgments, and withdrawing it when the danger seemed to be 
past. It was here that they finally commenced their flight and 
here that Pharaoh ''made ready his hundred chariots" and 
'* pursued after them." 

The Israelites resided in Egypt during its golden period, the 
era of the erection of the greater part of its finer and more skil- 
fully wrought monuments, the time of the Thutmosis, the Amen- 
ophis and the earher Ramses. Immediately after the Exodus, 
as if by divine decree, the national decline commenced. Few 
new monuments were erected and the old ones, neglected, gradu- 
ally became impaired, being preserved only by their inherent 
durability and the clemency of the cUmate. Only one more great 
warrior king, Ramses III, was added to the long roll of famous 
sovereigns. 

Most that is known of Egypt, during the seven centuries pre- 
ceding the conquest of Cambyses, 525 b. c, and his destruction of 
the greater part of its grand monuments, is the misfortunes, 
defeats and dethronements of its petty sovereigns, as recorded 
in the histories of their conquerors. 

With its long and glorious history, its beauty and grandeur, 
its mercantile and commercial importance, what is Zoan to-day? 
The western boundary of the city was once a great river whose 
waters were covered with sails, whose banks teemed with the 
busthng, noisy life of commerce. Crowds of people loaded and 
unloaded boats. Immense blocks of stone, transported from 
Syene, were placed on its banks by the simple force of the num- 
bers of slaves and prisoners employed. Multitudes embarked 
and disembarked amid the awe of marshaled hosts and the pomp 
of royalty. 

It was a mighty city, proud of its elegantly wrought and colos- 
sal monuments, haughty in its wealth, strength and power. 



128 Egypt and its Betrayal 

To-day it is represented by a small, dirty, miserable village of 
fishermen of the same race as the fishermen about Lake Menza- 
leh. Even the sheik's dwelling, the most pretentious in the 
village, is a miserable abode and the others floorless hovels. Its 
river was long since filled with its own deposits and is now re- 
placed by the sluggish waters of the draining and irrigating 
canal, San el-Hager, which passes through marshy lands, over- 
grown with reeds and swamp-plants. The commerce of the 
once puissant city is represented by an occasional fisherman's 
boat, and the life and ceaseless whirl of its former business by a 
semi-weekly market for the sale to the neighboring peasants, 
under the supervision of an official agent, of the scarcely edible 
fish caught in the canals. 

Its architectural grandeur, the splendor of its colossal monu- 
ments, lie buried in its ruins. Nowhere is a deeper sense of fallen 
greatness, of departed power and splendor experienced.^ No 
ruin is more complete, more impressive, and none can give a 
more vivid suggestion of the inevitable fate that awaits all the 

works of man. 

It was past midday when we returned to camp, and there, 
much to our surprise, we found the large boat we had left some 
miles down the old bed of the river the day before. On asking 
the sailors for an explanation, we were informed that, the wind 
having continued to blow from the north, the water had risen 
and they had sailed up for us. On examination, the water was 
found to be much deeper than the night before. The embank- 
ment was such that no water could have come from above. 

When all was ready, a rope was fastened to the mast high up, 
and the eight sailors, transformed into tow-men, put their shoul- 
ders this time to the rope and, following the bank of the stream, 
pulled the boat after them. As we neared the lake, the channel 
turned to the east, giving us an opportunity to take advantage 
of the wind. The men came on board, the sails were hoisted and. 



Ancient Zoan 129 

just at the setting of the sun, we passed out upon the lake, along 
the very route over which we had come the day before so slowly 
and with so much difficulty. 

There was now an abundance of water. We sailed alongside 
the anchored boat which had been left behind, put her sailors 
aboard her and continued our journey. The next day at ten 
o'clock, we were in sight of the low sand-beach near Damietta, 
whence we had embarked. The wind, which we had at first sup- 
posed to be a sea breeze, had remained in the north. It was a 
stiff saihng breeze, but by no means a gale, and yet, where we 
had had plenty of water for sailing on the evening of our em- 
barkation, we were now aground. We were not more than four 
miles from our destination, but with hard labor, towing and 
lifting, in the same manner as on the other side of the lake, we 
did not reach our haven until late in the afternoon. 



130 Egypt and its Betrayal 



CHAPTER XIII 



ROUTE OF THE EXODUS 



A MINUTE description of the trip on Lake Menzaleh has been 
given to show the effect of the wind on a large surface of shallow 
water, its arms and inlets, because of its possible aid in correctly 
interpreting the BibUcal account of what has been termed the 
passage of the Red Sea by the Israelites. 

A continued strong wind off a sea or lake always raises the 
water along the shore, but the receding and returning of a coast 
line to a degree approaching that witnessed (except in the case 
of tides) is probably elsewhere unknown. The cause is the 
shallowness of the water and the grasses which prevent an under- 
tow. The phenomenon appeared to have a strong bearing upon 
the theory, then lately advanced by Brugsch Bey (afterwards 
Brugsch Pasha), as to the point of departure and the route taken 
by the Israelites at the time of the Exodus.^ 

This theory fixed the point of departure at Zoan or San, which 
has been identified by the inscriptions as Ramses and is claimed 
to be the Ramses of the Bible. Thence, the route passed east- 
ward, not far from Lake Menzaleh, to Succoth, Etham and a 
point before Pi-hahiroth, opposite Avaris (Baal-Zepon), between 
Migdol and the sea (Mediterranean). 

Previous to the excavation of the Suez Canal, Lake Menzaleh 
stretched much farther east than it does to-day. It formerly 

* See Brugsch's " Egypt under the Pharaohs ", second edition, Vol. II, page 
363. 







f. 



X 



Route of the Exodus 131 

extended as far as Pelusium or Sin, fifteen miles bej^ond its pres- 
ent eastern border, and, probably, in a narrow arm along the 
coast to and into the ancient Lake Sirbonis. The canal was cut 
through the sand-beach on the Mediterranean, at the point where 
Port Said is now located, and continued south twenty-eight miles 
through Lake Menzaleh and its marshes. This part of the lake 
had a depth of water of from one to three feet. 

The canal was excavated with dredges. Immense banks of 
earth were formed on either side, thus cutting off the flow of the 
Nile waters, which come into the lake from the irrigating canals. 
Consequently, all east of the canal became a desert with occa- 
sionally impassable marshes. There are now no inhabitants east 
of the canal, and the sites of the ancient cities and fortified 
places are only determined by their ruins. 

Avaris (Baal-Zephon) was east of Pelusium and about twenty- 
five miles east of the canal. Pi-hahiroth was a short distance 
still further east, near the west end of Lake Sirbonis. This lake, 
in ancient times, extended eastward from this point fifty miles, 
being separated from the Mediterranean by a narrow strip of sand, 
which was at no point more than a few hundred yards in width. 

From Lake Sirbonis westward to the Damietta branch of the 
Nile, a distance of about seventy miles, a similar narrow sand- 
beach separated the sea from lakes and marshes up to the time 
of the construction of the canal. West of Port Said, there is 
still a similar sand-beach between the sea and Lake Menzaleh. 
The great ancient highway or caravan route from Egypt to Syria 
came from the southwest, passing Migdol and Baal-Zephon. It 
crossed these marshes near Pi-hahiroth at the west end of Sirbonis 
and continued eastward on the strip of land between the sea and 
this lake, passing Mt. Casius about twenty-five miles from Pi- 
hahiroth. All of these shallow lakes and marshes received their 
waters from the Nile, and were filled with grasses, reeds and other 
aquatic plants. 



132 Egypt and its Betrayal 

Brugsch in his latest notes on the subject did not attempt to 
fix the exact point of the catastrophe that befell the army of 
Pharaoh, but indicated that it must have happened, provided his 
theory was correct, near the western extremity of Lake Sirbonis, 
or at some point on this lake. 

Pi-hahiroth was the " place of the gulfs," or, as the word signi- 
fies, ''the entrance to the gulfs" on the route to Syria. It was 
near the point of crossing the marshes to or from the sea-coast. 
This crossing and Lake Sirbonis were considered by the ancients 
as exceedingly dangerous and, if their accounts are true, armies 
have been lost in their treacherous bogs. 

The Tanitic mouth of the Nile was a little west of the present 
city of Port Said and the Pelusiac mouth, at Pelusium. 

Strabo says: 

"Between the Tanitic and Pelusiac mouths of the Nile are 
lakes and large and continuous marshes, among which are numer- 
ous villages. Pelusium itself has many marshes lying around it, 
which some call Barathra, or water holes and swamps. It is 
situated a distance of more than twenty stadia (a little over two 
miles) from the sea. The circumference of the wall is twenty 
stadia. It has its name from the mud (7717X01)) of the swamps. 
In this quarter Egypt is difficult of access, i. e., from the eastern 
side, towards Phoenicia and Judea, and on the side of Arabia 
Nabatsea, which is contiguous, through which countries the road 
to Egypt lies." ^ 

Diodorus, speaking of the Persian King Artaxerxes Ochus' 
€xpedition to Egypt, 349 b. c, says: 

" When he came to the great lake (Sirbonis), through ignorance 
of the places, he lost part of his army in the bogs, called Barathra. 
But because we have before in the first book spoken of the nature 
1 Strabo, B. XVII, C. I, Sec. 21, Casaubon, 802. 



Route of the Exodus 133 

of this lake, and the strange things there happening, we shall 
now forbear to repeat them. Having passed these gulfs he came 
to Pelusium, the first mouth of the river Nile, where it enters into 
the sea." ^ 

The description Diodorus had given of this lake is as follows: 

'^The parts toward the east [of Egypt] are partly secured by 
the river [the Pelusiac branch, long since filled] and partly sur- 
rounded by deserts, and by the marshes, called Barathra [ret 
/3dpa9pa, Gulfs or Pits]. For there is a lake between Ccelo-Syria 
and Egypt, very narrow, but exceedingly deep, even to a wonder, 
two hundred furlongs in length, called Serbon [Sir bonis]. If any 
through ignorance approach it, they are lost irrecoverably; for 
the channel being very narrow, like a swaddling band, and com- 
passed round with vast heaps of sand, great quantities of it are 
cast into the lake by the continual southern winds, which so 
cover the water, and make it to the view so like unto dry land, 
that it cannot possibly be distinguished. And therefore many 
unacquainted with the nature of the place, by missing their way, 
have been there swallowed up together with whole armies. For 
the sand being trod upon, sinks down and gives away by degrees, 
and like a malicious cheat, deludes and decoys them that come 
upon it, till too late. When they see the mischief they are likely 
to fall into, they begin to support and help one another, but with- 
out any possibility either of returning back, or escaping certain 
ruin; for sinking into the gulf they are neither able to swim (the 
mud preventing all motion of the body), nor in a capacity to 
wade out, having nothing firm to support them for that purpose; 
for sand and water being mixed together the nature of both is 
thereby so changed that there is neither fording nor passing over 
it by boats. Being brought therefore to this pass, without the 
least possibility of help to be afforded them, they go together with 

^ Diodorus, Booth's Translation, Book XVI, page 118. 



1 34 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

the sand to the bottom of the gulf at the very brink of the bog; 
and so the place agreeable to its nature is called Barathrum." ^ 

This description is undoubtedly much exaggerated, but it 
serves with what is written by other ancient historians to give 
us an impression of the character of this lake and the marshes 
and quicksands on this part of the route from Egypt to Syria. 
Milton refers to this dangerous place in the following lines from 
'' Paradise Lost " : 

"A gulf profound as that Sirbonian bog 
Betwixt Damiata and Mount Casius old, 
Where armies whole have sunk." 

It is very rarely that a European has in recent times passed 
by this route. Mr. Greville J. Chester, under the direction of 
the Palestine Exploration Fund, made the excursion in February, 
1880. In his report, speaking of Lake Sirbonis, he said: 

'*I repeatedly tried to get near enough to the lake to dip my 
hands in the water, but I failed on every occasion. When I got 
near, and sometimes I got within three or four yards, the treach- 
erous sand gave way under my weight, and I was compelled to 
retire on pain of being engulfed in the mud beneath." ^ 

In the old manuscripts of the Bible the words that have been 
translated Red Sea were "Yam Staph," meaning the "Sea of 
Suph." The Hebrew word "suph," as the lexicographers say, 
means "weeds, reeds, rushes, papyrus-plant." "Yam Suph" 
indicated a whole navigable region covered with aquatic plants, 
like Lake Menzaleh, and, according to Brugsch Pasha, than 
whom there is no higher philological authority on the ancient 
languages of Egypt and its neighboring countries, was applied 

^ Diodorus, Sic. Book I, c. Ill, p. 35. 

^ Mr. Chester's report was published in the quarterly statement of the Pales- 
tine Exploration Fund, in July, 1880. 



Route of the Exodus 135 

to the lakes and marshes in the northeast of Egypt. The ark of 
Moses was made of suph, that is, reeds or rushes. 

The Red Sea was known at the epoch of the Exodus under the 
name of Yuma Kot and Yuma Sekot, but at no period as Yam 
Suph. In the German Bible of to-day the marginal reading is 
''Sea of Weeds." 

The late Dr. VanDyke, of the American College of Beirut, 
Syria, was one of the most learned and eminent Arabic scholars. 
His translation of the Bible into Arabic is used in all Protestant 
missions in Arabic speaking countries. In a conversation on this 
subject, he informed the writer that he followed the old version, 
translating Yam Suph into Arabic by words signifying ''Sea of 
Weeds" or "Sea of Reeds," although at that time the question 
of the passage of the Israelites by any other route than that of 
the Red Sea had not been raised. 

It is also well established that where the word sea alone is used 
in the narrative it means the Mediterranean. If we take from 
our version of the Bible narrative the words "Red Sea," there is 
nothing left on which to base the theory of the passage of the 
Israelites through the sea now known by that name, and we are 
free to select such other route as the facts may indicate. The 
Red Sea is of deep clear water without any growth of grasses, 
weeds, reeds or rushes. 

Assuming that Brugsch is correct in his location of the points 
mentioned in the Bible, the Egyptians overtook the Israelites 
when they were encamped beside Pi-hahiroth, the "entrance to 
the gulfs," "between Migdol and the sea" (Mediterranean). 
This was a little west of the western end of Lake Sirbonis and in 
the vicinity of the "dangerous places," the gulfs or pits of the 
ancient geographers. Even at this day, when the Nile waters 
have been cut off many years, it is very difficult to approach the 
ruins of the ancient Pelusium. 

Mr. Chester's experiences in visiting this place, a feat rarely 



136 Egypt and its Betrayal 

attempted, and his description of the extensive marshes lying 
further east near the lake, partially confirm the statements of 
Diodorus. He says: ^'The surface of the marsh, which extends 
for miles, was covered with drifting sands, through which as 
through a cake the feet went down. ... I sank nearly to my 
knees in the mud." 

The shallow lakes, as I have stated, formerly stretched all 
along the coast and there was an arm or branch of this shallow 
water extending eastward from Pelusium to the so-called "gulfs," 
the only point where a passage could be made from the interior 
to the coast of the sea. Pharaoh, learning the position of his 
fleeing bondsmen, said, "They are entangled in the land," the 
desert being on one side, where the army was approaching, and 
the sea or morass on the other. 

The Israelites, on being pursued, " were sore afraid " and " cried 
out unto the Lord." "Moses stretched out his hand over the 
sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind 
all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were 
divided." ^ 

A strong east wind, blowing during the night, would have 
moved the waters of this narrow arm westward and would have 
left, where in their natural position they w^re shallow, only 
"dry land." There was no place in the Isthmus, except along 
the Mediterranean coast, that an east wind could have had this 
effect. At neither of the other places, lately mentioned in con- 
nection with the supposed discovery of Pithom as possible 
points of passage of the Israelites — one, near Shaluf, south of 
the Great Bitter Lake, and the other, between this lake and 
Lake Timsah — could an east wind have produced any such re- 
sult. It would, in either of these cases, have blown almost 
directly across a narrow body of water. 

There was no reason for using the words " caused the sea to go 

1 Ex. XIV, 21. 



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Route ot the Exodus 137 

back by a strong east wind," unless this wind had some agency 
in producing the result. It certainly could have had no such 
agency on the deep waters of that arm of the Red Sea which 
comes to Suez, where the Biblical commentators have, until a 
recent date, located the point of passage. 

The phrases "the waters were divided," 'Hhe waters were a 
wall to them on their right hand and on their left," and others 
of simiilar character, can easily be explained. Could they not, 
they would have but little importance in the minds of those ac- 
quainted with the highly figurative character of Oriental lan- 
guages and with the manner in which the people express them- 
selves. 

When the waters were drawn by the east wind out of the east- 
ern branch of the larger body of water lying near Pelusium, as it 
now would be out of an arm of Lake Menzaleh, the Israelites, 
having no chariots and choosing their locality, could have passed 
in safety. The waters were divided when they were so lowered 
as to leave where they had been shallow a dry place for crossing. 
The ''waters were a wall" simply means they were a defence, not 
a towering mass. On account of these waters, with their miry 
quicksand bottoms, on the right and on the left, the Egyptians 
could not approach on either side. They were to the Israelites 
a wall of defence. 

''In the morning watch," that is, toward morning, the winds 
ceased to blow and the waters commenced returning. The Egyp- 
tians, who, with their six hundred heavy, small wheeled chariots, 
undertook in the night to follow the Israelites, missed their way 
in the darkness and were caught in the treacherous bogs of 
the "gulfs." "The Lord took off their chariot wheels, and 
they drave them heavily,"^ and, the "sea returning to its 
strength," ^ that is, to the natural depth of the water, the Egyp- 
tians were overwhelmed and destroyed as an organized army. 

1 Ex. XIV, 25. 2 Id. 27. 



138 Egypt and its Betrayal 

The description of the tearing off of the chariot wheels and the 
difficulty of drawing these clumsy instruments of war applies 
rather to an army floundering in the mire, than to one suddenly 
overwhelmed by the falling of walls of water, that had remained 
piled up on either side, till the moment of the catastrophe, as 
often represented in old pictures and sermons. 

Previous to the approach of the Egyptians, the Israelites may 
have crossed onto the strip of sand-beach between the sea and 
the lake, near the east end of which there was in ancient times a 
fortress. Barred by this obstacle or in obedience to the purpose 
of God that they should not go by the way of the PhiHstines,^ 
they may have turned south and crossed the lake at some 
shallow place. In this case, the same results might have been 
produced by the east wind at the point of their crossing. 

Sirbonis was for a long period, beginning, perhaps, with the 
filling up of the Pelusiac and Tanitic branches of the Nile, a dry 
lake having only boggy or marshy places. About 1876, a few 
fishermen from Lake Menzaleh went to this desolate and wholly 
uninhabited desert region, and cut a channel from the sea to the 
old lake-bed at its eastern end for the purpose of making a fishing- 
lake. In ancient times there may have been at this point an 
outlet to the sea, as there is now from Lake Menzaleh. Sirbonis 
thus became again, after a long period of dryness, a lake forty 
miles in length and in some places five miles broad. Like the 
other coast lakes it is generally very shallow. 

Mr. Chester, at the time of his visit, found the lake filled with 
salt water and, consequently, containing no fresh-water plants, 
and very few marine plants. He refers to the cutting of the 
channel and to the fact of the lake having been previously dry, 
but wholly ignores the consequences of the changed conditions. 
He assumes that the condition of the lake was the same in an- 
cient times as that in which he found it and that it, therefore, 

1 Ex. XIII, 17. 



i 



Route of the Exodus 139 

then contained no fresh-water vegetation, and could not have 
been the Yam Silph, Sea of Weeds, Reeds or Rushes. He even 
finds fault with Brugsch's map of the lake, because it had been 
taken from the older charts and was not correct after the refilling 
of the lake. 

He was sent out to obtain facts to disprove the theory of 
Brugsch Pasha, which startled some of the old school theologians 
and rendered worthless a multitude of eloquent sermons that had 
given vivid pictures of the swallowing up of the armies of Pha- 
raoh by the deep waters of the Red Sea. The facts, however, 
which he gives sustain the opinion of Brugsch as to the general 
route of the Exodus. 

The Israelites did not wait for the reorganization of the dis- 
comfited Egyptian forces. ''So Moses brought Israel from the 
Red Sea [Yam Staph] and they went out into the wilderness of 
Shur,^ and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no 
water." ^ Shur means a wall and Etham a fortress. Therefore, 
the wilderness or desert of Shur or Etham is the wilderness of 
the wall, or fortress. Brugsch says that this desert is on the 
northeast of Egypt adjoining Lake Sirbonis and the former east- 
ern end of Menzaleh, and that no part of the desert to the east 
or in the vicinity of the Red Sea was ever known by these 
names.^ He also says that his object in what he wrote was only 
/'to direct public attention to the historical consequences of the 
monumental records, and the writings on papyrus, bearing on 
the subject." 

^ Or, as it is stated in Numbers XXXIII, 8, the wilderness of Etham. 

2 Ex. XV, 22. 

^ Brugsch Pasha (Dr. Henry Brugsch), lately deceased, was the most learned 
Egyptologist of his time. His dictionary of the hieroglyphs and his great 
geography of Ancient Egypt, containing the names of over thirty-six hundred 
places, on which he labored twenty years, will be a lasting monument of the 
great work he accomplished. Professor Maspero who took up the work later 
has now surpassed all his predecessors. 



140 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

Many criticisms have been made upon Brugsch's essay on 
the Exodus. One result of the examination and discussion is that 
all competent persons, who have examined the subject with the 
light of modern discoveries, have wholly given up the old theory 
of the passage of the Israehtes through any part of what now 
constitutes the Red Sea. 

Objections can be made to any of the routes suggested. No 
one of the other routes, however, is sustained by evidence as 
convincing as that adduced by this most candid and conscientious 
scholar. There is nothing conclusive regarding the question of 
the route of the Exodus in the supposed discovery of the Pithom 
of the Bible, the treasure city built by the people of Israel for 
Ramses. This city is thought to be too far south for the route 
suggested. The word Pi-tum or Pi-atum was found. Tum or 
Atum was a god, one of the forms of the Sun-God, who was more 
particularly worshipped at HeUopoHs and in all the eastern part 
of the Delta. Pi means dwelling or house, and Pi-tum, Pi-atum 
or Pithom, is the house of Tum. Wlierever Tum was worshipped 
was the house of Tum, the phrase being used in the same way as 
''the house of God" in Christian countries. The city in question 
may have been the Bibhcal city of Pithom, or it may have been 
simply a place where Tum was worshipped, some edifice or place 
dedicated to this god. 

I have not given the principal facts mentioned by Brugsch, 
nor have I intended to give any opinion as to the route of the 
Exodus. I have referred only to such facts as seemed necessary 
to show the possible bearing on this subject of my experience on 
Lake Menzaleh. I have done this for the reason that I have seen 
no reference made in any writings to the extraordinary receding 
of the coast line and the draining of the arms of these shallow, 
grassy lakes by a continued strong wind. It is evident that the 
attention of Brugsch Pasha had never been called to this subject. 
Certainly, the facts related, considered in connection with the 



Route of the Exodus 141 

Biblical narrative, have an important bearing on the question 
of the route of the Exodus. 

There has been no other route suggested which harmonizes 
the known physical conditions of the country in the earliest his- 
toric periods with the Biblical record. All the other routes re- 
quire the supposition that, at that period, the Suez arm of the 
Red Sea extended far north of its present terminus. Of this 
condition we have no proofs and there is no reasonable ground 
for supposing that it then existed. Such extension, had it ex- 
isted, would have been directly north. In that case, what agency 
could the east winds have had in producing the results described 
in the sacred narrative? What reason could be given for the use 
of the words ''the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong 
east wind all that night"? Moreover, this arm of the sea would 
have been salt water and would not have produced the grasses 
necessary to constitute a sea of weeds (Yam Suph). 

The question of the route of the Exodus cannot be considered 
as solved. The only objection, however, to the northern route 
is the one based upon the supposed discovery of the site of Pi- 
thom. The claims advanced for the other routes are not only 
founded on improbable suppositions, but are subject to other 
unanswerable objections. 



142 ^gyP^ ^^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER XIV 
Cleopatra's needle— negotiations by which it was secured 

The idea of securing an obelisk for the City of New York had 
its origin in 1877. It grew out of the newspaper reports of the 
work, then in progress, of transporting an obeHsk from Alex- 
andria to London. Paris had such a monument already. London 
was to have one. Why should not New York, the great city of 
the New World, be equally favored? 

It was erroneously stated in a New York newspaper that his 
Highness, the Khedive of Egypt, had signified ''his willingness 
to present to the City of New York, upon a proper application, 
the remaining obehsk of Alexandria." Mr. John Dixon, the 
contractor who transported to London the obehsk now on the 
Thames Embankment, was the person, it was claimed, to whom 
the Khedive had thus expressed himself.^ 

Mr. Henry G. Stebbins, then Commissioner of the Department 
of Public Parks of the City of New York, undertook to secure the 
necessary funds for transporting and erecting the obelisk in 
question. Mr. William H. Vanderbilt was asked to head the 
subscription, but he generously offered to defray the whole ex- 
pense of the undertaking. After some telegraphic communica- 

^ Mr. Dixon afterwards wrote the writer that the report that the Khedive 
had had any conversation with him regarding the obelisk of Alexandria or 
had given him any intimation of an intention of presenting an obelisk to the 
United States, or to the City of New York, was wholly a mistake; that, in fact 
nothing whatever of that nature ever took place. 



Cleopatra's Needle 143 

tions had been exchanged with Mr. Dixon as to the sum that 
would be required, Mr. Vanderbilt entered into a written contract 
with Mr. Stebbins to that effect. Only eight days after the first 
publication of the erroneous statement, Mr. Stebbins addressed 
to the Department of State at Washington the following letter:— 

"New York, 15th October, 1877. 
"Hon. Wm. M. Evarts, 
"Secretary of State, 
"Dear Sir: 

"I have the pleasure to enclose two copies of a letter addressed this 
day to his Highness the Khedive of Egypt, on the subject of the obelisk to 
which I had the honor of inviting your attention yesterday. 

" Will you kindly send one copy to the Consul-General of the United States 
at Alexandria with instructions to await the arrival of an authorized repre- 
sentative of Mr. Dixon, mentioned in letter, bringing with him an engrossed 
copy of the letter, and upon the arrival of that representative, to accompany 
him into the presence of the Khedive, or in some other proper way to certify 
to the authority of the letter, and to the authority of the person bearing it. 

" I am, dear Sir, 

" Yours very respectfully. 
Signed: " Henry G. Stebbins." 

On the receipt of this letter the Secretary of State, Mr. Evarts, 
addressed to me the following despatch, enclosing a copy of 
Mr. Stebbins' letter and a copy of the letter which it was pro- 
posed to have delivered to his Highness the Khedive: — 

" Department of State, 

"Washington, October 19, 1877. 
"No 85. 

"E. E. Farman, Esquire, Etc., Etc., Etc. 
"Sir: 

"This department is in receipt of a communication from Mr. Henry G. 
Stebbins, Commissioner of the Department of Public Parks of the City of New 
York, relative to the Obelisk which it is understood the Government of the 
Khedive is willing to present to the City of New York, on due provision being 
made for its transportation and erection in some public place there. Mr. 
Stebbins encloses a copy of a letter of which the engrossed original is to be 
presented to the Khedive by an authorized representative of Mr. Dixon of 



144 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

London, the engineer in charge of the transportation to England of the obe- 
lisk known as Cleopatra's Needle, and solicits the sanction of this Government 
in the presentation of that letter. 

" A copy of the letter of Mr. Stebbins and of its enclosure is herewith trans- 
mitted to you. In view of the public object to be subserved you are instructed 
to use all proper means of furthering the wishes expressed in Mr. Stebbins' 
letter. 

" I am, Sir, 

" Your obedient servant, 
Signed: " Wm. M. Evarts. 
"Enclosures: 

"Mr. Stebbins to Mr. Evarts, October 15, 1877, with accompaniment." 

Copy of proposed letter of Mr. Stebbins to the Khedive. 

"To 

" His Highness, 
"The Khedive. 
"Highness: 

"The deep interest excited throughout the civilized world by the 
removal, under the auspices of your enlightened and liberal Government, of 
the great obelisk known as 'Cleopatra's Needle,' from Alexandria to England, 
has been quickened in the United States of America by the intimation con- 
veyed to the people of the City of New York through the estimable Mr. Dixon 
of London, that your Highness might not be indisposed, upon a proper appli- 
cation to that effect being made, to testify your gracious good will and friendl}'' 
sentiments towards the American People, by presenting to the City of New 
York, for erection in one of the great public squares, the companion obelisk 
which now stands at Alexandria. 

" In the hope that such an application may indeed be favorably received by 
your Highness, an eminent citizen of New York has signified to me his willing- 
ness to defray all the necessary costs and charges of bringing this obelisk across 
the Atlantic Ocean and setting it up in such a situation, there to remain as an 
eloquent witness alike of the liberal and enlightened spirit in which your 
Highness administered the affairs of the ancient and illustrious country so 
happily confided to your sceptre and of your good will towards the youngest 
of the great nations of the world. 

"The generous and public-spirited citizen of whom I speak has requested 
me in my capacity as a Commissioner, for now many years past, of the Depart- 
ment of Public Parks in the City of New York to lay before your Highness, 
therefore, through the Honorable, the Secretary of State of the United States 
of America, this formal application and to say to your Highness that if it 
shall please you to authorize the removal of the obelisk and its erection here, 



Cleopatra's Needle 145 

I am fully prepared to commission Mr, John Dixon of London at once to imder- 
take the work. 

" I am sure your Highness will permit me to say to you, that the successful 
completion of this work will be gladly and gratefully hailed by the people of 
New York, and of the United States of America, as a new illustration of the 
statesmanlike wisdom displayed by your Highness in your patronage of the 
mighty enterprise which has united the Mediterranean with the Indian seas; 
and as a new and most interesting bond connecting the Republic of the United 
States with the Government of your Highness, and with the Egyptian people 
and Realm. 

" I have the honor to be, 
"Your Highness's 

" Most obedient humble servant, 

Signed : " Henry G. Stebbins. 
"New York, 
"Oct. 15, 1877." 

I was much surprised by the Secretary's despatch. I had 
already received information of the publications in New York 
relative to the obelisk, but was aware that the question was 
entirely new in Egypt. Soon afterwards I addressed to Mr. 
Evarts the following despatch and, at the same time, sent him 
a private letter in which I made other suggestions as to the course 
that should in my opinion be pursued. 

"No. 196. 

" Agency and Consulate-General of the United States. 
"Cairo, November 24, 1877. 
"Honorable William M. Evarts, 
" Secretary of State, 
"Washington, D. C. 
"Sir: 

" I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch No . 
85 enclosing a copy of a letter of Mr. Henry G. Stebbins, Commissioner of 
the Department of Public Parks in the City of New York, addressed to his 
Highness, the Khedive, and also a copy of a letter addressed by the same per- 
son to you, both relating to the obelisk now standing at Alexandria, which it 
is desired to obtain and transport to the City of New York. 

"On the arrival of Mr. Dixon's Agent, I shall not fail to use, in accordance 
with your instructions, all proper means of furthering the wishes of Mr. Steb- 
bins. 



146 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

" I fear, however, that there will be serious opposition to the removal of the 
obelisk from the City of Alexandria, so much in fact that although the Khedive 
might personally desire to gratify the wishes of the citizens of New York, he 
would not think it best to grant their request. 

"The obelisk lately removed by the English, having been thrown down 
many years since, was nearly covered with sand and was not considered of any 
value to Alexandria. The one now standing, and the monument known as 
Pompey's Pillar, are the only objects of antiquity remaining in the city that 
are of sufficient importance to be visited by travelers. 

"Should it be impossible to obtain the obelisk at Alexandria, it is not im- 
probable that an application for the one standing at Luxor, or one of those at 
Karnak would be favorably received. 

"The companion of the obelisk removed by the French in 1833, and after- 
wards erected at Paris in the 'Place de la Concorde,' is within a few rods of 
the river at Luxor. There are two others at Karnak, two miles below Luxor, 
and about fifty rods from the river. The removal of one of these might not be 
impracticable. At least in the case of the failure to procure that at Alexandria, 
the question might be considered by those in New York, who have taken an 
interest in the subject. 

" I have the honor to be, Sir. 
"Your obedient servant 

Signed: "E. E. Farman." 

In the meantime Mr. Dixon had been informed of the steps 
taken by the parties in New York and of the action of the De- 
partment of State. He was much surprised at the manner in 
which his name had been used. He was directly mentioned in 
the letter of Mr. Stebbins, which it was proposed should be de- 
livered to the Khedive, as having intimated that his Highness 
might not be indisposed to present to the City of New York an 
obelisk. Mr. Dixon, as has been explained above, had never 
had any conversation with the Khedive upon the subject. He 
knew enough of diplomatic matters and court usages to under- 
stand that it would be entirely out of place for him, a private 
English citizen, or for his agent, to ask of the Khedive a favor in 
behalf of the citizens of any country, even his own. 

Had the Khedive had any intention or desire to confer a favor 
upon the people of the United States, he would never have given 



Cleopatra's Needle 147 

intimation of the fact to a subject of some other nationality in- 
stead of to the accredited representative of our own Government. 
Mr. Dixon took immediate measures to inform the parties in 
New York of their mistake, and, fearing lest I might act on the 
instructions I had received from the Department of State, he 
also wrote me the following letter: 

"1, Laurence Poultney Hill, 
"Cannon Street, 

"London E. C, Nov. 16, 1877. 
" H. E. The Consul-General of the United States, 
"Egypt. 
"Sir: 

" You will, I believe, have received a communication from Mr. Secretary 
Evarts requesting you to ascertain from the Government of his Highness, the 
Khedive, whether he would be disposed to sanction the removal of an obelisk 
to the United States and present one for such purpose. 

" This is all very proper but my name has been mixed up with it as though 
I were purveyor of obelisks to H. H. ! ! I believe it is founded upon a casual 
remark of mine that if the U. S. wanted an obelisk I thought it possible that 
one might be obtained. Mr. Vanderbilt offered to defray the expenses. 

"You will see whilst a suitable despatch from the United States secretary 
might have its prayer acceded to, neither my name nor that of anyone else 
ought to be mentioned. 

" I have written to the United States explaining my views and an amended 
despatch will be sent you. Meantime if you can secure one, well and good^ 
but pray do not mention my name as having suggested it. I shall be glad to 
co-operate in the novel enterprise, but H. H. has treated me with such con- 
sideration that I would not at any price run the risk of offending him as the 
despatch I allude to would certainly do. 

" I have the honor to remain, Sir, 
"Your obedient servant, 

Signed: "John Dixon." 

Mr. Dixon's letter, a copy of which was sent to Mr. Evarts, 
was received immediately after the sending of my despatch to 
the latter, on the 24th of November. 

I expected soon to receive further instructions; but none came, 
nor any communication on the subject from any source. On 



148 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

receipt of Mr. Dixon's communication^ sent to parties in New 
York, the whole matter of the obelisk was dropped. After the 
newspaper publications of October, 1877, which I have men- 
tioned, there was a profound silence. No reference to the sub- 
ject was made in any of the New York journals for more than a 
year and a half, and then not until my despatches of May, 1879, 
to the Department of State giving information of the successful 
termination of the negotiations which I had personally conducted 
had been received. Neither Mr. Dixon, nor his agent, nor the 
engrossed copy of Mr. Stebbins' letter ever came. 

During my trip with General Grant in Upper Egypt (of which 
I have written in ''Along the Nile with General Grant"), I ex- 
amined the obelisk at Luxor, and the two at Karnak, with refer- 
ence to the feasibility of their removal. My conclusion was that 
the only obelisk in Egypt that we should be at all likely to obtain 
was the one at Luxor. No one would think of removing that 
of Heliopolis, antedating Cleopatra's Needle a thousand years 
and standing where it was originally placed by Usertesen — 
a soHtary monument marking the site of the once famous city 
of On. 

The larger of the two obelisks at Karnak, the largest obelisk 
known, in fact, stood where it was placed by the woman-king 
Hatshepsu thirty-four hundred years before. The smaller one 
near it, that of Thutmosis I, whose mummy has since been de- 
posited in the Museum at Cairo, had one corner broken. It was 
also cracked in a manner that would render its removal without 
further injury difficult, if not impossible. The only other obe- 
lisks then in Egypt, except those broken into fragments, were 
that of Alexandria and that of Luxor. 

I informed General Grant of the correspondence relative to pro- 
curing an obelisk and asked his opinion as to the propriety of 
my attempting to obtain one on my own initiative, as the people 
in New York seemed to have abandoned the undertaking. He 




Obelisk of liamses 11 at Luxor; Companion of, but Larger than, 
That of the Place de la Concorde, Paris. 



4 



Cleopatra's Needle 149 



replied that he could see no objection to my doing so and advised 
me to procure one if possible. 

On the 4th of March, I had an interview with the Khedive 
at the Palace of Abdin for the purpose of laying the matter be- 
fore him. I knew I should not receive a direct refusal. The 
people of the Orient, especially the better classes, are very polite. 
They have very little of the brusque, decisive, Anglo-Saxon way 
of disposing of matters. They seldom give a definite refusal to a 
request. Courtesy toward a representative of a foreign power 
would specially require that such a request should be taken into 
consideration and that a hasty answer should not be given, un- 
less it was a favorable one. 

I informed his Highness that the people of the United States 
desired one of the ancient obelisks of Egypt, and that a wealthy 
gentleman of New York had offered to defray the expenses of its 
transportation and of its erection in that city. I mentioned the 
obelisk of Paris and that of London and the natural desire of 
our people to also have one in their metropolis. I explained, in 
the course of the conversation, that our nation was so young and 
all its works of so recent a date that one of the ancient monu- 
ments of Egypt would be much more highly prized in the United 
States than in England or France. I called attention to the obe- 
lisk at Alexandria as the most accessible for shipment, but added 
that, if his Highness concluded to favor us with such a gift, we 
should be much pleased with any his Highness might select. 

I found the subject entirely new to the Khedive. He seemed, 
at first, to be surprised at the proposal. However, after various 
questions and observations, he said that, while it would be a 
great pleasure for him to be able to accede to my wishes, or to do 
anything in his power to gratify the people of the United States, 
the matter would have to be seriously considered. As to the 
obelisk at Alexandria, he did not think it best even to mention 
it, since the people of that city would be opposed to its removal. 



150 Egypt and its Betrayal 

I did not afterwards make any special mention in the presence 
of his Highness of the Alexandrian obelisk, although that was 
the one that was finally given us. As I took leave of the Khedive 
he said I could call his attention to the subject at some future 
time. 

I immediately sent a despatch to Mr. Evarts informing him 
of the subject and results of this interview. Other conversations 
were had with the Khedive regarding the matter, without any 
definite results. A little later I was present at a dinner given by 
the Khedive at the Palace of Abdin and it was on this occasion 
that the first favorable intimation was given in regard to the obe- 
lisk. There were from thirty to forty persons present, among 
them M. Ferdinand de Lesseps. After dinner the company 
was conversing in groups. The Khedive, who was constantly 
shifting his place, seemed in better spirits than was usual for him 
in those sad days of financial embarrassment. He approached 
me and invited me to be seated. His first words were, '^Well, 
Mr. Farman, you would Uke an obelisk? " 

I replied that we would Hke one very much. We conversed 
some minutes on the subject, without his Highness giving the 
least intimation of his intentions. Some one came to join us and 
we rose and, soon after, separated. 

A few minutes later I was in conversation with M. de Lesseps. 
This was at the time the Khedive was about to establish a com- 
mission of inquiry to ascertain the amount of the net revenues 
of the country with a view to determining what rate of interest 
could be paid on the public debt. There had been an almost 
total failure of the winter crops in a large portion of Upper 
Egypt, resulting from the unprecedentedly low Nile of the pre- 
vious year. This rendered it impossible, in the opinion of his 
Highness, to continue the payment of interest at the rate of 
seven per cent on the nearly one hundred millions of pounds of 
Egypt's indebtedness. He had named, or was about to name, 



Cleopatra's Needle 151 

M. de Lesseps president of the commission. During our conversa- 
tion the Khedive joined us. M. de Lesseps, turning towards him, 
repeated something I had just said about the best manner of 
ascertaining the amount of the revenues. Either his Highness 
did not hear, or, what is more likely, he did not wish to enter 
upon the discussion of that subject. Interrupting the conversa- 
tion he said, ^' Mr. Farman wishes an obelisk." 

M. de Lesseps, who was a fine conversationaUst, and always 
polite, agreeable and quick in his replies, immediately said, ''That 
would be an excellent thing for the people of the United States." 
Then, after a moment's hesitation, during which time the Khe- 
dive seemed to await his further reply, he added: ''I do not see 
why we could not give them one. It would not injure us much 
and it would be a very valuable acquisition for them." 

M. de Lesseps had been so long in Egypt that he considered 
himself as one of the country, and, in speaking of Egyptian mat- 
ters, was accustomed to say ''we," "us," and "ours." The 
Khedive simply said, "I am considering the matter" and turned 
to speak with another person who was approaching. 

When I made my dinner call, two or three days afterwards, 
the obeHsk was again mentioned. His Highness said that he had 
concluded to give us one, but not that of Alexandria, and added 
that he would take measures to obtain the necessary informa- 
tion and inform me of his decision. He at once called his private 
secretary and directed him to write a note to Brugsch Bey (after- 
wards Brugsch Pasha), requesting a list and description of all 
the obelisks remaining in Egypt, and an opinion as to which 
could best be spared. I thanked his Highness warmly, and, as I 
was leaving, he said that within a short time his secretary would 
inform me which obelisk we could have. 

It was not many days after this interview that a reception and 
ball was given at the Palace. Brugsch Bey and myself happened 
to meet and, after the exchange of a few words, he said in a rather 



152 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

reproachful tone, '^I learn you are trying to obtain an obelisk 
to take to New York." 

I replied, ^'Why not, they have one in Paris, and one in Lon- 
don and the people of New York wish one also." 

He answered: ''You will create a great amount of feeling; all 
the savants of Europe will oppose it. The Khedive has asked 
nie to give a description of the obelisks remaining in Egypt, and 
to state which one can best be spared. I have sent a description 
of the obelisks, but I shall not designate one to be taken away, 
for I am totally opposed to the removal of any of them." 

Not desiring to enter into any discussion on the subject, I 
replied in a conciliatory manner, saying that it was of no great 
importance, that there were a number of obelisks in Egypt, and 
that the removal of one would not make much difference. He 
assured me that I would encounter a great deal of antagonism. 
This was the beginning of an opposition that was to delay for 
more than a year the completion of the gift which his Highness 
had deliberately determined upon. 

Had this opposition come from Egyptians of position, who 
would have had a right to be heard, I should have desisted at 
once, through delicacy, from all further efforts in the matter. 
It came, however, wholly from Europeans temporarily residing 
in Egypt, who, whatever might be their opinions and however 
well founded their conclusions, had no rights to protect against 
the United States, and, consequently, were not entitled to be 
considered. It was purely an affair between Egypt and our- 
selves, and, as no opposition was made on the part of any real 
Egyptian, I did not feel bound to yield to the opposition of others 
nor have any scruples about taking every proper means to over- 
come it. 

About this time I was informed by the English Consul-General 
that the obelisk at Luxor, the only one I then had hopes of ob- 
taining, belonged to his people. He affirmed that it was given 



Cleopatra's Needle 153 



to them at the same time that the one at Paris was given to 
France, and announced that they claimed it and should object 
to its being removed by anyone else. The Consul-General ad- 
mitted that he did not know that they should ever take it, but 
he insisted upon their right to do so. The Khedive afterwards 
said to me that it was true that the obelisk at Luxor was offered 
to the English at the same time that its companion was given 
to the French. They did not take it, but they objected now to its 
being given to anyone else. Under the circumstances it would 
not do to interfere with it. 

This was a new and unexpected complication. The Luxor 
obelisk had been offered to the Enghsh by Mohammed Ali, fifty 
years before, because he did not wish to create any ill feelings on 
account of his gift to France. It was not then accepted and there 
was no intention of taking it. Another had in the meantime been 
accepted and removed to London. It was evident that claim was ^ 
laid to this simply to prevent its going to the United States. 



:?. 



154 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER XV 



GIFT OF THE OBELISK 



Weeks passed and no note came from the Khedive. In the 
meantime his private secretary had informed me verbally that 
no obelisk had been designated to be given to the United States, 
for the reason that Brugsch Bey had reported no opinion as to 
the one that could best be spared. I knew that special objections 
were being made in the case of each obelisk, that all the European 
influences were combined against me, and that the English claim 
to the Luxor obelisk was only one of the results of this combina- 
tion. 

Once afterwards, during the spring of 1878, the matter was 
mentioned by the Khedive. He spoke of the English claiming 
the Luxor obelisk and said that he had not yet fixed upon one 
to be given to us, but that he would do so at no very distant day. 

Serious difficulties came upon Egypt about this time. The 
Khedive was harassed and vexed in many ways. M. de Lesseps, 
well knowing that he could not do justice to Egypt and at the 
same time please the Paris bankers, had gone to France without 
entering upon the duties of the Commission of Inquiry. The 
Commission had been organized, however. It was composed of 
persons who had been selected in the interests of the bondholders, 
and its work progressed with rapidity. Among the measures of 
economy it demanded was the dismissal of many Government 
employees, and the Americans in the military service of the 
Khedive were among the first to be discharged. Without any 



Gift of the Obelisk 155 



previous notice, they ware informed that their terms of service 
were ended. They all had considerable amounts of arrears of 
pay due them, and some of them had disputed claims and de- 
mands for indemnity which complicated their relations with the 
Government and rendered a settlement of their accounts difhcult. 

I was called upon to aid my countrymen and found myself 
suddenly thrown into an unpleasant contest. In view of this 
depressed state of I^^gyptian affairs and the fjmbarrassments with 
which the Khedive found himself surrounded, there was no time 
for him to think of the obelisk and any .mention of it on my part 
would have been discourteous. Therefore, I left Egypt about 
the middle of July, without again referring to the subject, on a 
leave of absence, with permission to visit the United States. 

Early in October, a few days before I sailed from New York 
on my return, T had an interview with Mr. P]varts in which I 
informed him of the state of the negotiations relative to an obe- 
lisk. He said he would be very much pleased if I could obtain 
one, and that he was ready to do anything he properly could to 
aid me. 

On njy arrival in Egypt in November, I found a great change 
in Governmental matters. What was called the Anglo-French 
Ministry had been formed with Nubar Pasha at its head. It 
had been organized on the theory of ''responsibihty." A respon- 
sible ministry is responsible, while in power, for the government 
it administers; but it is supposed to be responsible or accountable 
to some person, or body of persons. This Ministry assumed to 
act independently of the Khedive, as the English Ministry does 
of the Queen. But in England there is a parliament to which 
the Ministers are accountable, to this extent at least, that they 
must have its support or resign. 

In Egypt there was no parliament, all the legislative as well as 
the executive power being vested in the Khedive. There was a 
Chanriber of Notables, which was sometimes assembled to vote 



156 Egypt and its Betrayal 

on questions of extraordinary taxation. This Chamber was con- 
voked in December, 1887, or in January following, but was 
utterly ignored by the Ministry, which even refused to submit to 
it a report of the proceedings of the Minister of Finance. The 
Ministers, according to their theory, were independent of all 
restraint, and, as it afterwards appeared, no one could rightfully 
remove them. At least this was affirmed. 

Such was the Ministry through which the obelisk was now to 
come if at all, the Khedive, as claimed, having no authority in 
the premises. 

Mariette Bey, who had spent the summer at the Exposition 
in Paris, had arrived, and I knew he was making strenuous 
opposition to the gift. He was then at the head of the Depart- 
ment of Antiquities and his opposition could not but embarrass 
and delay the negotiations. At one time it seemed likely to 
wholly defeat the intentions of the Khedive. 

On my arrival I paid the customary visit to the Khedive and 
had frequent interviews with him afterwards, but no mention 
was made of the obelisk for a number of weeks. He finally 
signified his willingness and desire to complete the gift, but he 
did not hesitate to intimate to me what I very well knew, that 
the matter of the obelisk was in the hands of the Ministers. 

Though I had little faith in any long continuance of the exist- 
ing state of things, I took occasion to bring the matter of the 
obelisk before his Excellency, Nubar Pasha, whom I had never 
seen until my late arrival in Egypt. He had been in disfavor with 
the Khedive and had resided in Europe since 1875, being re- 
called to head the Ministry at the instance of certain European 
Powers. 

I found that he already understood the question, not through 
the Khedive, but through those who were opposed to the gift. 
He took a fair view of the matter, however, and said that, if the 
Khedive had expressed his intention of giving us an obelisk, it 



Gift of the Obelisk 157 



should be considered as a '^fait accompli,'' and that there was no 
reason why the Ministry should oppose it. He promised to see 
the Khedive, learn exactly what had been done, and then carry 
out his Highness' wishes. He added, however, that if it were a 
new and open question, he should oppose it. 

Not long afterwards he informed me that he had seen the 
Khedive, and that his Highness said that he had promised an 
obelisk and desired to have the promise fulfilled. His Excel- 
lency added that he would take the necessary measures for that 
purpose. 

About this time Mariette Bey laid before the Council of Minis- 
ters a memorial on the subject, in which he made strenuous 
opposition to the removal of any of the obelisks of Egypt, and 
particularly set forth the sacredness of the obelisks at Karnak 
and HeliopoHs. It was this memorial and the declarations of 
Mariette that afterwards determined which obelisk should be 
given us. He undoubtedly thought that there would be suffi- 
cient opposition from other sources to prevent the removal of 
the obehsk at Alexandria; that the English would take care of 
theirs at Luxor; and that, if he could prevent the selection of 
either of those at Karnak, or the one at HeliopoUs, the project 
would be defeated.^ 

In February Nubar Pasha informed me that the English 
claimed the obelisk at Luxor and that Mariette Bey was so 
strongly opposed to the removal of those at Karnak and Heli- 
opolis that he had determined to give us the one at Alexandria, 
Cleopatra's Needle. He at the same time prepared and handed 
his clerk a memorandum of a despatch to the Minister of PubUc 

^ Previous to the time of his being employed by the Egyptian Government, 
Mariette Bey took to Paris the finest collection of antiquities that has ever been 
removed from Egypt. A large, and the most valuable, part of the collection 
was obtained only by long and strenuous diplomatic pressure and by keeping 
the secret, during the negotiations, of what had been found. The collection, 
numbering about seven thousand objects, is still in the Museum of the Louvre. 



V- 



158 Egypt and its Betrayal 

Works who represented France in the Ministry, asking him to 
institute the necessary formalities for its delivery. Whether this 
despatch was ever sent I do not know. Two or three days after- 
wards, events happened that threw Egypt into intense excite- 
ment and compelled Nubar Pasha to retire from the Ministry. 

A large number of Egyptian officers and soldiers had been dis- 
charged, without receiving their arrears of pay. It was also just 
at this time that we were getting the details of the famine in 
Upper Egypt during the previous months of November and De- 
cember, and the public feeling had become very hostile towards 
what was known as the European Ministry. This state of excite- 
ment culminated on the 18th of February in a street attack by 
the discharged officers upon Mr. Rivers Wilson and Nubar Pasha, 
as they were leaving their departments to go to their noon-day 
meal. The officers demanded their arrears of salaries and, on 
payment being refused, took the Ministers back to the Depart- 
ment of Finance and held them prisoners until information was 
conveyed to the Khedive who came personally to their relief. It 
was then only with great difficulty, and after some shots had 
been fired, that order was restored. 

Nubar Pasha resigned the next morning. The English and 
French Ministers, supported by their respective Governments, 
retained their places and, after thirty days of diplomatic nego- 
tiations, the Ministry was reorganized, but under such conditions 
that the two European Ministers could virtually control the 
Government. This reorganized Ministry was not destined to 
last long. Turns of the wheel of fortune were frequent in Egypt 
and they generally happened when least expected. It is called a 
country of surprises, and there is an Oriental proverb, according 
to which only what is intended to be provisional is lasting. An 
Arab does not finish his house through fear that some accident 
will befall it or its occupants. 

The new regime was supposed to be permanent. Telegraphic 



Gift of the Obelisk 159 

lines had been freely used and the combined diplomatic wisdom 
of two great European Powers called into action. Conditions 
were formulated and imposed that were designed to insure the 
immovability of the Ministers. When the work was completed, 
it was supposed that there was at least one unchangeable in- 
stitution in Egypt. The reorganized Ministry was henceforth 
to be an immovable fixture in the governmental machinery. But 
the Arab proverb held good and the structure which rested on 
laborious negotiations lasting thirty days, endured just eighteen. 
On the 7th of April occurred what was called the ^' coup d^etaV 
of the Khedive, Ismail Pasha. 

The action of the new Ministry was such that the Khedive 
soon afterwards claimed it to be necessary, for the safety of the 
country, that he should again take the Government into his own 
hands and form a Ministry composed wholly of Egyptians. He 
requested Cherif Pasha to form and take the presidency of a new 
Ministry. The trust was accepted and the Ministry was formed. 
Once more the Khedive was the real as well as the nominal chief 
and head of the Government, but the diplomatic and political 
circles of Europe were thrown into a state of excitement. At 
Paris, where the feeling against the Khedive was the most in- 
tense, his dethronement was loudly demanded. 

I had known Cherif Pasha since the time of my first arrival in 
Egypt. He was admitted by all parties to be a noble, honest and 
just man, who never entered into intrigues or speculations. In 
his youth he had received a good European education. He had 
commenced his career as an army officer and risen to the rank of 
colonel, and afterwards had had experience in every department 
of the Government. Always frank and sincere, he enjoyed more 
of the confidence of the people than any other person the Khedive 
could call into his service. 

It was not many days before matters were again running 
smoothly so far as the local Government of Egypt was concerned. 



i6o Egypt and its Betrayal 

The only difficulties were in Paris and London, where potent 
influences were at work against his Highness. In Egypt, the 
native public sentiment was one of hostility to being governed 
by foreigners. As a result of this sentiment, there arose about 
this time a faction styling itself the '' National Party," having 
for its motto "Egypt for the Egyptians." It was small in num- 
bers and to a large extent necessarily secret in its action, but its 
feeling of antagonism to "foreign rule" was in accord with that 
of the native population. 

A number of European Governments were at this time, in 
consequence of some real or supposed interest, claiming a share 
in the Government of Egypt, and vying with each other for a 
preponderance of influence and power. The Government of 
the United States, having no political purposes to carry out in 
this country, did not assume the right to interfere with its 
Government. It was, consequently, able to keep itself free from 
all political complications. Under these circumstances, there 
was naturally the kindest feeling among the Egyptians toward 
our Government and people. 

Cherif Pasha was conversant with the negotiations relative to 
the obehsk. Though the new Ministry had been organized on 
the same theory of "responsibility" as the one it replaced, I had 
good reasons to believe that his Excellency would not put any 
obstacles in the way of the fulfilment of the expressed intentions 
of the Khedive. 

About a month after the so-called ^^ coup d^etat/^ political 
affairs became entirely quiet, and it seemed for the moment as 
if the European Powers were to acquiesce in the new order of 
things. A convenient opportunity occurring, I suggested to 
Cherif Pasha, that I would like to have the matter of the obelisk 
terminated. He said he would take the first opportunity to talk 
with the Khedive and that his Highness' wishes, whatever they 
were, should be carried out. Some days afterwards when I was 



Gift of the Obelisk i6i 

calling upon him for another purpose he told me that the ques- 
tion of the obelisk had been considered and had been practically 
decided in my favor, but that he desired to speak to the Khedive 
once more on the subject. He added that he should see him that 
evening and if I would call on the morrow at eleven o'clock, he 
would give me a definite answer. This I was led to understand 
would be a favorable one. The next day I went to the Ministry 
at the hour designated, but was informed that Cherif Pasha was 
at the Palace, and probably with the Khedive. 

On my return to the Consulate I stopped to visit the Pasha 
who held the position of Keeper of the Seal, and who had rooms 
in one part of the Khedive's residence. I found there two of the 
princes, brothers of the late Khedive, Tewfik Pasha. We entered 
into conversation, and coffee was served according to the uni- 
versal Oriental custom. In a few minutes Cherif Pasha came in, 
and, after the usual salutations, had a few words with the Keeper 
of the Seal in their own language. Starting to leave, he gave me 
an invitation to accompany him, and, bidding good morning to 
the others, we went out together. On shaking hands with Cherif, 
I noticed that he was much agitated, and I suspected that there 
was important and perhaps alarming news from the Cabinets of 
Paris and London. As soon as we were in the hall, his Excellency 
commenced a conversation, saying that he presumed I had been 
to see him, that he regretted not having been at the Ministry, 
but that he had been detained by important business with the 
Khedive. We had passed through a long hall and down a stair- 
way and were just going out of a doorway near which both of our 
carriages were awaiting us when the Pasha said, " It is the obe- 
lisk at Alexandria that you prefer, is it not? " 

I replied that that one was more conveniently situated for 
removal than the others. 

'^ Well," said the Pasha, ''we have concluded to give it to you." 

After thanking him, I said that I ought to have something in 



1 62 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

writing, confirming the gift, to send to the Secretary of State at 
Washington. I said further that, though we had always talked 
of it as a gift to the United States, it was understood that it was 
to be erected in New York, and that I had been thinking it would 
be better to give it directly to that city, as otherwise there might 
be some complication requiring an act of Congress. 

Cherif replied, " We give you the obelisk, do as you wish with 
it." After a moment's reflection he added: — ''Write me a note 
indicating what you wish to have done. State that all the ex- 
penses of removal are to be paid by the United States, or by the 
City of New York if you prefer. Hand the note to my Secretary- 
general and tell him to prepare an answer confirming the gift, in 
accordance with the suggestions you give, and to bring it to me 
for my signature." 

Two hours later I handed to the Secretary-general of the De- 
partment of Foreign Affairs, at the same time informing him of 
what the Pasha had said, a letter of which the following is a 
translation from the French: — 



"Agency and Consulate-General of the United States at Cairo, May 17, 1879. 
"Excellency; 

" Referring to the different conversations that I have had the honor to have 
with your Excellency in which you have informed me that the Government of 
his Highness, the Khedive, is disposed to present to the City of New York, to 
be transported and erected there, the obelisk of Alexandria, I should be pleased 
if your Excellency would have the kindness to definitely confirm in writing 
the gift of this monument. 

" It is understood that its transportation is to be effected at the expense of 
certain citizens of the said City of New York. 

"I beg to assure your Excellency in advance of the warm thanks of my 
Government for having thus favorably responded to the representations I 
have made to the Government of his Highness the Khedive, in accordance 
with the instructions that I have received on this subject. 

" I have every reason to believe that the monument which is thus soon to be 
transported to and erected in the City of New York, will always be a souvenir 
and a pledge of the friendship that has ever existed between the Government 
of the United States and that of his Highness, the Khedive. 




The Obelisk, Known as Cleopatra's Needle, as It Stood 

at Alexandria, SI lowing the N'early Effaced 

Hieroglyphics on the Land Side. 



Gift of the Obelisk 163 

"I beg your Excellency to accept the renewed assurance of my high con- 
sideration. 

Signed: "E. E. Farman. 
" To his Excellency Cherif Pasha, Minister of Foreign Affairs and President of 

the Council of Ministers." 

The next day I received the following reply which I have trans- 
lated from the French. 

"Cairo, May 18th, 1879. 
"To Mr. Farman, Agent and Consul-General of the United States. 

"Mr. Agent & Consul-General: 

" I have taken cognizance of the despatch which you did me the honor of 
writing on the 17th of the current month of May. 

" In reply I hasten to transmit to you the assurance, Mr. Agent & Consul- 
General, that the Government of the Khedive having taken into consideration 
your representations and the desire which you have expressed in the name of 
the Government of the United States of America, consents, in fact, to make 
a gift to the City of New York of the obelisk known as Cleopatra's Needle, 
which is at Alexandria on the sea-shore. 

"The local authorities will therefore be directed to deliver this obelisk to 
the representative of the American Government, and to facilitate, in every- 
thing that shall depend upon them, the removal of this monument, which 
according to the terms of your despatch is to be done at the exclusive cost 
and expense of the City of New York. 

" I am happy, Mr. Agent & Consul-General, to have to announce to you this 
decision, which while giving to the Great City an Egyptian monument, to 
which is attached as you know, a real archaeological interest, will also be, I 
am as yourself convinced, another souvenir and another pledge of the friend- 
ship that has constantly existed between the Government of the United States 
and that of the Khedive. 

"Be pleased to accept, Mr. Agent and Consul-General, the expression of my 
high consideration. 

Signed: "Cherif." 

It will be seen by these notes that the obelisk was given directly 
to the City of New York, and not, as is stated in the inscription 
on a claw of one of the crabs upon which it now rests, to the 
United States. 

On the 22d day of May I sent Mr. Secretary Evarts, the fol- 
lowing telegram: — ''The Government of the Khedive has given 



164 Egypt and its Betrayal 

to the City of New York the obeUsk at Alexandria, known as 
Cleopatra's Needle." I also, on the same day, forwarded to him 
a despatch enclosing copies of the notes that had been exchanged 
between Cherif Pasha and myself. 

The obelisk was secured, but the complications in the afiFairs 
of Egypt continued. On the 27th day of June the Khedive 
abdicated in favor of his son, Mehemet Tewfik Pasha, who, on 
the same day, was proclaimed Khedive of Egypt. 

The experiment of a European Ministry was not tried again. 
Cherif Pasha was continued at the head of the Administration 
during the summer, but early in the autumn what was known as 
the Riaz Ministry was formed. 

The final negotiations by which the obelisk was secured had 
been conducted so quietly that the first public information in 
Egypt that the gift had been made came from New York 
through the medium of English newspapers. Very little was 
then said upon the subject by any of the local journals, but as 
soon as the Riaz Ministry was organized an attempt was made, 
through the influence of certain Europeans, to have the action 
of the late Government reversed. The matter was two or three 
times considered in the Council of Ministers, and commented 
upon by the European press of Egypt. The Ministers, however, 
finding that the gift had been confirmed in writing, by an ex- 
change of official notes, decided that it was too late for them to 
take any action in the matter. Lieutenant-Commander Gor- 
rings arrived in October, 1879, to effect the removal of the obe- 
lisk, and the necessary orders were given to the local authorities 
of Alexandria for its delivery. 

On the receipt of my despatch of the 22d of May informing 
him of the successful termination of the negotiations. Secretary 
Evarts wrote me a private letter, and at the same time sent me 
an official despatch, dated June 13th, 1879. In the latter he 
said: — 



Gift of the Obelisk i65 

*' I have to aclmowledge the reception of your despatch of the 
22nd ultimo, with its enclosures in which you have informed the 
Department that the negotiations entered into to procure an 
Egyptian obelisk for the City of New York have been successful, 
and that the Government of his Highness the Khedive has gen- 
erously presented to that city the obelisk known as Cleopatra's 
Needle. 

^'It is a source of great gratification to this Government, that 
through the generosity of the Khedive this country is soon to 
come into the possession of such an interesting monument of 
antiquity as Cleopatra's Needle. You are therefore instructed 
to inform his Highness that the great favor he has conferred upon 
this Republic by making this gift is highly appreciated and that 
it is felt that such a rare mark of friendship cannot but tend to 
still further strengthen the amicable relations which have ever 
subsisted between the two countries and will cause the memory 
of the Khedive to be long and warmly cherished by the American 
people. 

"The historical account of the obelisks of Egypt, which your 
despatch contains has been read with interest." 

It must not be supposed that the obelisks and other ancient 
monuments of the country are slightly prized by the educated 
Egyptians. On the contrary, they are highly valued and guarded 
with great jealousy. Considering all the circumstances, the 
Khedive could not have furnished a stronger proof of his respect 
for the Government and people of the United States than this 
gift of Cleopatra's Needle. I have abundant evidence of the 
great admiration he had for our institutions, though he knew 
that nothing of the kind was possible in the Orient. 

The other obelisks that have been removed from Egypt were 
obtained under circumstances entirely different from those now 
existing. They were for the most part removed by the Roman 



i66 Egypt and its Betrayal 

conquerors. Only two, besides Cleopatra's Needle, have been 
taken away in modern times, that of Paris and that of London. 
The latter was given to England in 1820, at a time when Egypt / 
was in a condition entirely different from that of to-day. Fur- ( 
thermore, this obeUsk had been lying for centuries nearly buried 
in sand and rubbish. It was nmch injured, and, in comparison 
with the standing obelisks, httle prized. Yet it was considered 
a gift worthy to be bestowed upon his Majesty, George the 
Fourth, in return for favors and presents received from him by 
Mohammed Ali Pasha, then Viceroy of Egypt. 

The obelisk now at Paris was given to France ten years later, 
in 1830, on account, it is claimed, of services rendered to the 
Government of Egypt. It stood at Luxor, then a small village 
of mud huts, situated six hundred miles up the Nile and inhabited 
by a few hundred natives. 

There wxre three other obelisks standing in this vicinity and 
many colossal ruins, the most magnificent and interesting in the 
world. The place was at that period, however, seldom visited 
by Europeans, and the removal of one of its obelisks was not an 
event to create any opposition. Yet the monument was consid- 
ered an important embelUshment of the city of Paris. 

The European press of Egypt, commenting in the fall of 1879 
upon the subject of the removal of Egyptian monuments, laid 
great stress upon the fact that the London and Paris obelisks 
were both given on account of services and favors rendered by 
the Governments of the countries to which they were presented, 
while there was no pretence of any such consideration for the 
gift of Cleopatra's Needle to the City of New York. 

This only proves that the courtesy was prompted by the re- 
spect and kindly feelings of a sovereign towards a government 
and a people who had always been his friends, and who had no 
selfish designs to further against him, his subjects or his country. 

In the acceptance of the obelisk the City of New York assumed 



79 \ 



) 



Gift of the Obelisk 167 

a solemn obligation toward future generations, towards all of 
those millions of the citizens of the Republic who shall in the 
coming centuries visit the great metropolis. That obligation is 
to preserve the monument which has been placed in its keeping. 
It has come to us through thirty-five centuries, and, after all the 
vicissitudes through which it has passed, is still in a fair state of 
preservation. It would now be a shameful negligence, as repre- 
hensible as wanton destruction, on the part of those having the 
custody of this noble monument, to allow it to be unnecessarily 
injured for the want of that provident care which prudence 
demands should be bestowed upon it. 

The injuries it has already received are generally supposed by 
those who have only slightly examined the subject to have re- 
sulted from its having stood for a long time near the sea. This 
is a mistake. It was not the sides facing the sea that were in- 
jured. I have elsewhere shown that these injuries could only 
have been produced by the alkalies of the soil in which the obe- 
lisk probably lay for several centuries, or by fire. It is probable 
that the principal injuries were caused by the latter agency. 

It is well known that polished granite successfully resists all 
atmospheric influences in cold as well as in warm climates. But 
when this polish is once removed, and a rough uneven surface 
is presented, certain atmospheric and climatic influences are 
injurious. 



1 68 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER XVI 

THE REMOVAL OF THE OBELISK AND MASONIC EMBLEMS 

Cleopatra's Needle is a single shaft of red granite from the 
quarries of Syene, now Assuan, at the First Cataract of the Nile, 
seven hundred miles from the Mediterranean. It is sixty-eight 
feet ten inches in height and seven feet ten inches by eight feet 
two inches at its base. It tapers gradually upwards to six feet 
one inch by six feet three inches, terminating in a pyramidion 
seven feet high. Its weight is about two hundred and twenty 
tons. It stood upon the sea-shore at Alexandria, fifty feet from 
the water line, with its base buried in sand and earth that had 
been accumulating for centuries. 

The base of the obelisk, when uncovered, was found to be con- 
siderably rounded. It rested on two copper supports cast in 
the form of sea-crabs and placed under opposite corners. Under 
a third corner was a stone, but the fourth corner was unsup- 
ported. This left a space between the obelisk and its pedestal of 
eight inches. There was a thin iron wedge wholly oxydized on 
the top of the stone support. The bodies of the two crabs were 
about twelve inches long, measuring from the head back, and 
they were sixteen inches broad and eight inches high. Each, 
when entire, weighed over five hundred pounds. Bars of the 
same material as the crabs ran from their upper and lower sur- 
faces into the obelisk and the pedestal. These bars were over 
three inches square and nine inches long, forming dowels which 




Placing the Obelisk in the Hold of the Steamer Dessong 

at Alexandria. 



Removal of the Obelisk 169 

held the obelisk securely in its place. The dowels were sur- 
rounded and made firm in the mortises with lead. 

Originally, there were four crabs, the two missing ones having 
been removed by the natives for the metal. The remaining 
crabs were much injured. The claws and legs of one had been 
removed. The other had only one leg left and even this was 
broken in turning the obelisk to a horizontal position. It is 
probable that the crabs were placed under the obelisk as supports 
at the time of its re erection by the Romans, on account of the 
rounded condition of its base. One writer conjectures that the 
form of the crab was chosen to satisfy the superstition of both 
the Egyptians and Romans. 

The obelisk rested upon a pedestal formed of a single block 
of Syenitic granite tapering upward in about the same propor- 
tion as the obelisk. It was seven feet high, averaged nine feet 
square and weighed forty-eight tons. The substructure on which 
the pedestal rested was four feet nine inches high and the imder 
surface of its lowest step was only eighteen inches above the 
level of the sea. 

At the time of the erection of the obelisk at Alexandria, a little 
over nineteen hundred years ago, the surface of the earth at this 
point was lower than the lowest step of the pedestal. There was 
a gradual accumulation of sand and gravel to the height of seven- 
teen feet, burying the steps, the pedestal and finally the base of 
the obelisk. During the same period, there has been a marked 
change in the relative position of the land and sea. Tombs cut 
in the rocks overlooking the sea are now partly submerged and 
constantly washed by the waves. The height of the obelisk, 
measuring from the base of the lower step, was eighty-one feet 
two inches. 

Lieutenant-Commander Gorrings, U. S. N., was granted a leave 
of absence to enable him to remove the obelisk to the United 
States. He was accompanied by Lieutenant Seaton Schroeder, 



lyo Egypt and its Betrayal 

now Captain, and late Governor of Guam, who was a valuable 
assistant. Heavy constructions were made in the United States 
to aid in the accomplishment of the work. 

When the excavations were finished, the obehsk was encased 
with planks, and stone piers were erected to support the con- 
structions used in turning it to a horizontal position. These 
constructions consisted of steel frame- works on two opposite sides 
of the obelisk, similar in form to the iron piers of a bridge, on the 
top of which were placed bearings for trunnions. Heavy plates, 
with trunnions cast upon them, were fastened to the sides of 
the obelisk by means of long bolts or rods passing from one to 
the other through their projecting edges. Four pairs of heavy 
rods ran from the trunnion plates downward and through the 
ends of heel straps that passed under the obelisk. These straps 
were double-channeled and fastened to the rods by nuts. When 
the base of the obelisk was pushed by means of hydraulic jacks 
from the supports on which it rested, its whole weight was sus- 
tained by the rods and, thus supported, it was swung to a hori- 
zontal position, turning on its improvised trunnions like a 
mammoth cannon. 

Through an error in the computation of the weight of the 
upper and lower parts, the trunnions were placed too low, making 
that part of the obelisk above them heavier than that below. 
The obelisk, when once started, swung very quickly and struck 
with great force upon the nest of planks that had been erected 
to receive it. Happily, it was not broken, though the great 
throng of people present were startled by the crashing of the 
planks. It was a fortunate escape from a serious accident to 
the noble monument. A similar nest of planks was placed under 
the other end of the obelisk. After the pedestal and foundations 
had been removed, it w^as gradually lowered by means of hy- 
drauhc jacks to a caisson constructed to receive it. 

The caisson was pushed into the sea, towed around the ancient 



Removal of the Obelisk 171 

island of Pharos and into the harbor. Here, it was placed with 
the steamer Dessoug in a floating dry-dock. The dock was closed, 
the water pumped from it and the obelisk run into the steamer 
through a hole made in its side near the bow. The ways on which 
the obelisk was moved were made of heavy rails of channel iron 
on which cannon balls were used as rollers. To prevent any 
injury to the obelisk and cover its uneven surfaces, similar rails 
of channel iron were placed, inverted, under the obelisk and over 
the balls. On the arrival of the steamer in New York the same 
means as those used in Alexandria were employed in unshipping 
and erecting the obelisk. 

The Dessoug did not leave Alexandria until the 12th of June, 
1880, eight months having been employed in lowering and ship- 
ping the obelisk with the aid of the most approved modern 
appliances which had been previously prepared for this special 
purpose. Six months more, after its arrival in New York, were 
required for its unshipment and re erection. 

When we compare this work with that accomplished on the 
banks of the Nile thirty-five hundred years ago, we are unable 
to find words to express our astonishment at the skill of the 
ancient Egyptians. The most perfect and beautiful of the ex- 
isting obelisks is one of those that stand at Karnak. Its weight 
is nearly twice that of Cleopatra's Needle. According to hiero- 
glyphic inscriptions on its base, this immense monolith was cut 
from its native bed at Assuan, transported one hundred and 
forty miles and erected on the pedestal where it now stands, in 
seven months. The work appears to have been hastened in or- 
der that the erection of the obelisk might '' commemorate an an- 
niversary of the queen's coronation." We can excuse the satis- 
faction, the pride, the egotism of the wonderful woman, Queen 
Hatshepsu, over her marvelous achievement, as expressed in the 
following inscription which she had chiseled on the pedestal of 
the obelisk: 



172 Egypt and its Betrayal 

''This is what I teach to mortals who shall live in centuries to 
come, and who shall inquire concerning the monuments I have 
raised to my father. . . . When I sat in the palace and thought 
upon him who made me, my heart hastened me to erect to him 
two obelisks of electrum whose tops should reach the sky before 
the august gateway between the two great pylons of king Thut- 
mosis I. . . . When they see my monuments in after years and 
speak of my great deeds, let them beware of saying ' I know not, 
I know not why it was determined to cover this monument with 
gold all over.' It is thus that it hath been done, that my name 
may remain and live forever. This single block of granite has 
been cut at the desire of My Majesty between the first of the 
second month of Pirit of the Vth year and the 30th of the fourth 
month of Shomu of the Vlth year which makes seven months 
from the day when they began to quarry it." 

If we credit the ancient records, there were formerly obelisks 
of twice the weight of the largest now existing. The broken 
statue of Ramses II, at Thebes, weighed nearly nine himdred 
tons. Herodotus mentions a temple of Latona in the sacred 
enclosure at Buto, Egypt, forty cubits square, ''made from one 
stone " and, for its roof, another stone laid over it, having a cor- 
nice four cubits deep.^ A stone which I saw cut, but still remain- 
ing in the quarry, at Baalbec, weighs one thousand tons; and 
there are in the walls of the temple of that place three stones each 
weighing nearly one thousand tons. That part of the wall which 
contains them is of unknown antiquity, but it is probably con- 
temporaneous with some of the great monuments of Egypt, the 
ruins of which abound with stones of gigantic size. 

We know from the ancient drawings and hieroglyphic writings 
that colossal statues were drawn on sledges and that obelisks 
were sometimes transported by boat on the Nile or in the canals. 
By what means the great obelisks were placed on their pedestals 

1 Her. II, 155. 




7j 



c 



Removal of the Obelisk 173 

with the greatest precision, and without in the least marring 
the sharp edges of their bases, is still left wholly to conjecture. 

ObeHsks were originally made with a flat base which rested 
directly on the pedestal. Many of them were thrown down at 
the time of the Persian invasion and remained on the ground five 
hundred years, till the Roman conquest. Cleopatra's Needle, 
originally erected at HeliopoUs, was removed to Alexandria in 
the reign of Augustus Caesar. Either while lying at Heliopolis or 
in its removal, the corners of its base were broken off, leaving the 
lower surface slightly rounded. 

The bronze crabs appear to have been placed under its four 
corners that it might rest more securely on the pedestal. The 
crabs were discovered in 1877 by excavations made by Mr. 
Dixon at the time of the removal of the companion of Cleo- 
patra's Needle to London. Copies of inscriptions then found 
upon the remaining leg of one of the crabs were published by 
Dr. Neroutsos Bey, an antiquarian of Alexandria, and the crabs 
and base of the obelisk were recovered with earth. 

The inscriptions, as then published and subsequently copied 
by Lieutenant-Commander Gorrings, inserted by him in his book 
and inscribed on one of the crabs now under the obelisk, errone- 
ously gave the date of the erection of the obelisk at Alexandria 
as the year eight of the reign of Augustus Csesar, 23-22 b. c, 
instead of the year eighteen, 13-12 b. c. This led to much dis- 
cussion by antiquarians and historians, both in Europe and 
America, in consequence of its contradiction of what was sup- 
posed to be a well estabhshed historical fact, namely, that Bar- 
barus (PubUus Rubrius) was not at that time the prefect of 
Egypt, though he was the prefect ten years later. This fact had 
been established by a Greek inscription found on the ruins at 
Philse, which read, ''To the Emperor Csesar, the August, the 
Savior and Benefactor, in the 18th year. Under the auspices of 
Publius Rubrius Barbarus." 



174 -^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

In 1883, the question was submitted by the authorities of the 
Metropolitan Museum of Art, where the crab had been deposited, 
to Columbia College, and by the president of the College to the 
professor of Greek, Augustus C. Merriam. After a long and ex- 
haustive research, being unable to reconcile the facts of history 
with the inscriptions as published, the professor had the leg of 
the crab cleaned of its oxydation. Besides bringing clearly to 
view some of the Greek and Latin characters that had been sup- 
plied in the reading, he found that in the Greek inscription the 
date was the year IH (18) of the reign of Csesar, instead of H (8), 
and in the Latin inscription XVIII instead of VIII. 

The correct reading of the inscription is as follows: — 

L IH KAI^MP^ 
BAPBAPOSANEeHKE 
APXITEKTONOTNTO {%) 
nONTIOT 

The Latin L represents the word year and is used on nearly all 
of the dated Egyptian coins of the Greco-Roman period. I alone 
would be ten, IH, eighteen. The whole inscription may be trans- 
lated: "In the year eighteen [of the reign] of Csesar, Barbarus 
erected [or dedicated] [this monument], Pontius being the archi- 
tect." 

The Latin inscription was on the inner side of the claw and 
much injured, some of the letters being wholly effaced. The date 
and the other essential parts, however, were legible. The full 
inscription, restored, is as follows: 

ANNO XVIII C^SARIS 

BARBARVS PR.EF 

iEGYPTI POSVIT 
ARCHITECTANTE PONTIC 




Eemaining Part of One of the Bronze Crabs Which Supported the 

Obelisk, Showing Greek Inscription. The Upper 

Part Is One of the Dowels. 



i 



Removal of the Obelisk 175 

Professor Merriam was of the opinion that the Greek letter 
Psi C^) in the upper corner was the initial of the engraver. The 
inscription may be translated as follows: 

"In the year eighteen [of the reign] of Augustus Caesar, Bar- 
barus, prefect of Egypt, erected [this monument] by the architect 
Pontius (Pontius being the architect)." 

The foundations of the pedestal consisted principally of large 
blocks of Umestone. The whole structure below the pedestal and 
above the lower surface of the lower step was fastened together 
with "iron dogs" protected with a covering of lead, in the same 
manner as iron similarly used is protected at the present day. 
The iron was of an excellent quality and in a marvelous state of 
preservation, even where it had been somewhat exposed to at- 
mospheric influences. The entire structure was a magnificent 
piece of work and showed that the architect, Pontius, would have 
been entitled, even at this day, to a position in the first rank of 
his profession. 

In this structure were found emblems which have been re- 
garded by many Free Masons as an important discovery relating 
to the history of their order. Others have taken an entirely 
different view. The foundations were, with the exception of four 
pieces, of light-colored gray Hmestone. On removing the pedes- 
tal, there was found under its easterly corner a large block of 
finely pohshed Syenitic granite in the form of a cube, except the 
height was less than the side measurement. I was present at 
the removal of the first tier of stone. Directly below the granite 
cube and on the same plane with the lower step, was another 
piece of granite, the upper part of which was cut in the form of a 
builder's square. Its long arm was eight feet six inches by one 
foot seven and a half inches and its short arm four feet three 
inches by one foot seven and three-fourths inches. 

Between the arms of the square was a piece of pure white 
limestone, four feet long by two wide and nine inches deep. On 



176 -^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

one side of the square and touching its short arm was an irregu- 
lar piece of granite, its upper surface very rough, its angles all 
different, and having, consequently, no two of its sides parallel. 
On the other side of the stone forming the square was a large 
block of limestone with its upper surface about four inches below 
that of the square. It was covered with a thin stone, on the re- 
moval of which an iron trowel and a lead plummet were found. 

The trowel, which was the shape of a flattened spoon and eight 
inches long by five wide in its broadest part, was wholly oxydized. 
The handle was four inches long and three-eighths to one-half of 
an inch in relief. Spaces had been cut in the limestone block in 
which these objects had been imbedded in cement. These sym- 
bols — the square, the trowel, the plummet, the two granite 
blocks, the one rough and the other finely finished (the rough 
and the finished ashler), the white stone and the relative posi- 
tions in which they were found — are claimed by some members 
of the Masonic Fraternity to be strong evidence of the existence 
in the Roman period of an order of Free Masons from which the 
modern orders have sprung. So many concurrent items of evi- 
dence certainly tend to prove that these objects were designedly 
placed as emblems in the structure. But the presence of all but 
the trowel and the plummet might be wholly accidental, and 
these might well be placed by the workmen in so famous a struc- 
ture as symbols of their occupation without any reference to an 
organized order. 

Alexandria had been a large city for over two centuries. It 
had recently suffered severely from battles fought within its 
walls and contained many ruins. These were used as far as prac- 
ticable in new constructions and probably furnished the material 
for the foundations of the obelisk. There was nothing imusual 
in the form of any of the pieces, except that of the square. This 
stone, when taken out, was found to be twenty-five inches thick, 
having the part between its two arms cut out and lowered to the 



Removal of the Obelisk 177 

depth of nine inches. This space was filled with other stone, in- 
cluding the white block. When it was first discovered, only the 
upper surface of the form in a square could be seen. The lower 
part of the stone had the form of a rectangular parallelogram. 
Taken by itself, the natural inference would have been that it 
was a part of a large water-basin (from the court of a temple or 
palace), such as was common in the Greco-Roman period, and 
that one side and one end had been taken off, by accident or 
design, leaving the bottom and the other side and end as origi- 
nally made. 

The inside of the rim of the basin, if it was a basin, had, at its 
junction with the bottom, three small mouldings or beads and, 
on the outside at the bottom, the edges instead of having sharp 
angles were grooved. There was nothing in the appearance of 
the stone to indicate that it was cut in the form of a builder's 
square for the purpose of being placed in the obelisk foundation. 
Its resemblance to a square, when it was in place and the space 
between the arms was filled, may have suggested to the workmen 
the idea of adding the trowel and plummet. 



178 Egypt and its Betrayal 



CHAPTER XVII 

HISTORY OF OBELISK AND INSCRIPTIONS 

Cleopatra's Needle comes to iis from the golden period of 
Egypt's history. It was taken from the quarries of Syene, 
brought down the river six hundred miles, and erected at Heli- 
opolis during the reign of Thutmosis III, the most brilliant and 
famous sovereign of the long line of the Pharaohs. The central 
columns of its inscriptions are devoted to his praise. 

Ahmosis, the founder of the eighteenth dynasty, having ex- 
pelled from Egypt the last of the Hyksos, or '^ Shepherd Kings," 
who had ruled the Delta of the Nile for five centuries, led his 
victorious army as far as Sharuhen, a town near the southern 
boundary of Palestine which was subsequently allotted to the 
tribe of Simeon.^ He afterwards built, to protect his country 
from further invasions, a series of fortifications on his eastern 
frontier, not far from the present line of the Suez Canal. He re- 
stored peace and order in the interior of his empire and subju- 
gated certain tribes in Nubia that had refused to pay their cus- 
tomary tribute. Contenting himself with the laurels he had 
won, he turned his attention to the restoration, extension and 
embellishment of the temples which had been neglected dur- 
ing the long reign of the foreigners. 

Thutmosis I, the second in succession after Ahmosis, was a 
great warrior and carried his conquests much farther than his 
predecessor. He led his victorious army through Palestine and 

1 Joshua XIX, 6. 



History of the Obelisk 179 

northern Syria to Naharaim, the "land of the two rivers," 
which extended from the river Orontes far beyond the Euphrates, 
and returned to his capital, Thebes, ''covered with glory" and 
''laden with booty." He enriched Egypt by his conquests and 
by the wealth he afterwards constantly drew from Syria and his 
southern provinces. 

After a short Hfe, he was succeeded by his son Thutmosis II. 
Thutmosis II ruled in the right of Hatshepsu, his half-sister and 
wife, who was in fact the real sovereign. She was, through her 
mother, more nearly of purely divine descent than her husband, 
but it had required a miracle, wrought at her birth, to purify 
her blood of the taint inherited from one of her maternal an- 
cestors who was not of the royal family. 

The kings of Egypt claimed descent from the gods and re- 
ceived homage as divine beings from their subjects. Hence the 
purity of the royal blood was of the first importance. The king 
was the "son of Ra." His father was the "son of Ra," and his 
grandfather and great-grandfather and so back through all his 
ancestors to the god himself. There were no other earthly 
famines of divine descent with whom to contract marriages. 
Brothers and sisters intermarried and it was only their children 
who wTre of pure royal blood. The male child had the right of 
succession if he was of the same mother. It sometimes happened 
that a prince whose mother was only a common woman of the 
harem succeeded to his father's government, and those whose 
ancestors were wholly unknown, by success in war or by other 
means, became de facto rulers. These were not regarded by the 
priests and people as legitimate kings, and they often sought 
to legitimize their reigns and establish the succession in their 
children by marrying princesses of the divine blood. They made 
their wives queens and ruled in their right. The king also often 
associated with him in his government one of his children, when 
yet a mere child, because through its mother it was more nearly 



i8o Egyp^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

of the pure royal blood than the father. These means were not 
always considered sufficient to purify the blood and establish 
the legitimacy of the reigning family. This could only be done 
by a miraculous interposition of the ancestral god. Ra, the 
Sun-god, condescended to become incarnate in the earthly father 
at the moment of conception and thus the offspring became 
divine, a ''son of Ra." Besides that of Hatshepsu there are two 
other instances recorded in Egyptian history of the miraculous 
infusion of the divine essence into the blood of royal families, 
viz.: that of Amenothes III, the son of Thutmosis IV, and of 
Ptolemy Csesarion, the son of JuUus Caesar. These inventions 
of the priests were believed by them to be political necessities.^ 

Thutmosis I also reigned in the right of his wife. His mother 
was a mere concubine. To legalize his de facto government and 
continue the divine succession he made Hatshepsu his associate 
when she was a child. 

Thutmosis II died, after a short and uneventful reign, at the 
age of thirty. He left one son, Thutmosis III, whose mother, 
Isis, was a woman of low birth. He was then a child, but his 
aunt. Queen Hatshepsu, proclaimed him her successor and con- 
tinued to rule in his name, as she had previously done in the name 
of her husband. This nominally dual government continued 
upwards of sixteen years and ended at a time and in a manner 
of which the monuments give us no account. It was a prosper- 
ous, peaceful reign in which Egypt continued to amass wealth, 
build and beautify temples and erect other magnificent monu- 
ments. 

Thutmosis III was about twenty-five years old when he be- 
came sole ruler. He immediately entered upon his glorious 
career of conquests. About a hundred years had elapsed since 
the expulsion of the ''Shepherd Kings," during which period 

1 Maspero's " Struggle of the Nations," M. L. McClure's translation, 
demy quarto ed., pp. 236, 237. 



History of the Obelisk i8i 

the foundations of the empire had been firmly laid. But it was 
left to this ruler, to whom we are indebted for our obelisk, to 
raise Egypt to the highest rank among the then existing nations. 
Including the time he was associated with Hatshepsu, he reigned 
nearly fifty-five years. 

His whole reign was a succession of victorious campaigns, 
which extended the boundaries of the empire and brought to 
Egypt a constant flow of gold, silver, horses, cattle, sheep and 
other useful animals, and all the forms of personal wealth known 
to the commerce of that period. 

From the twenty-third year of his reign to the fortieth, he 
conducted against the Asiatic nations fourteen campaigns. He 
made long marches in strange and hostile countries, crossing 
rivers, mountains and deserts, taking by siege and storm strong- 
hold after stronghold and, finally, destroying or subjugating 
every tribe and people who dared to resist the victorious and 
beloved son of the god Amon. In the language of the hiero- 
glyphics, he extended his boundaries in the south to the remotest 
lands of inner Africa; in the west, beyond the tribes of the Lybian 
desert and along the shore of the sea; and, in the east and north, 
to the land of the " two rivers " and the " four pillars of heaven." 

He was acknowledged by his contemporaries to be the con- 
queror and ruler of the world and was regarded by his faithful 
subjects with reverence and awe as a divine being. Under his 
rule, Egypt became the central point of the world's influence 
both in commerce and war. His long reign and the immense 
resources at his disposal, arising from the annual tributes of the 
conquered countries, enabled him to carry out his early con- 
ceived plans for increasing the number and enlarging and deco- 
rating the temples of the gods of Egypt, of whom he considered 
himself an emanation and a part. 

It was in this and the immediately succeeding reigns that 
Egyptian art reached its highest degree of perfection. The 



t8 2 Egypt and its Betrayal 

centuries that have passed have left us, in most cases, only heaps 
of ruins; but enough remains to give us a full knowledge of the 
marvelous monuments of this period. Whether we consider the 
grandeur of the original conceptions, the grace of the massive 
forms, the completeness and symmetry of the structures, the 
elegance and effectiveness of the ornamental designs or the fine- 
ness, beauty and fidelity of their execution, we must conclude 
that the artists of the sixteenth century before our era produced 
master works that have never since been surpassed. It was 
Egypt's golden period in power and glory, in war and commerce, 
in wealth and art, and even historians and poets were not want- 
ing. Indeed, it is to these we are indebted for the very full 
knowledge we now have of this wonderful people. 

Among the monumental works of Thiitmosis III, his obelisks 
occupy a prominent place. That of St. John Lateran at Rome 
is one of his, though it appears from its inscriptions to have been 
finished and erected some time after his death by Thutmosis IV. 
It has been somewhat shortened, but it is still one hundred and 
five feet in height and is the largest existing obelisk, except the 
unfinished one lying in the quarry at Assuan. It weighs five 
hundred tons and that of Assuan over seven hundred. It was 
one of a pair erected in front of the temple of Amon at Karnak. 
The inscription says: ''The king has raised these immense obe- 
lisks to him (Amon) in the forecourt of the House of God." 

The remaining part of an obeHsk now at Constantinople was 
also his work, and has been attributed to the early part of his 
sole reign. Like the other Egyptian obelisks, it is of rose-colored 
Syenitic granite, and its inscriptions were carved in the elegant 
style of the period. The king here tells us of his Asiatic con- 
quests: ''King Thutmosis III passed through the whole extent 
of the land of Naharaim as a victorious conqueror at the head of 
his army. He placed his boundary at the horn of the world, and 
at the hinder water-land of Naharaim." 



History of the Obelisk 183 

Cleopatra's Needle and its companion now in London were 
originally erected by him at one of the gates of the Temple of the 
Sun at Hehopohs, probably toward the end of his life, about ) 
fifteen hundred years before Christ. He restored and beautified 
the then ancient temple and, according to the inscriptions, built 
a wall around it in the year forty-seven of his reign. 

Heliopolis was sometimes called the city of obelisks from the 
number of these monuments it contained. It had been a city of 
obelisks for a long period previous to the time of Seti I, and yet 
this monarch is spoken of on the monuments as '^ having filled 
Hehopohs with obehsks to illumine with their rays the Temple 
of the Sun." The obehsks, or, at least, their inscriptions, were 
gilded with gold or other metals . An inscription on the Temple 
of Amon at Karnak describes certain objects dedicated by the 
king, Thutmosis III, to this god. Among them was a '' beautiful 
harp, inlaid with silver and gold, and blue, green and other 
precious stones," a statue of the king, giving his exact Hkeness, 
^'such as had never been seen in Egypt since the days of the Sun- 
god Ra," and '' obehsks on which silver, gold, iron and copper 
were not spared and which shone in their splendor on the surface 
of the water and filled the land with their light hke the stars on 
the body of the heavenly goddess Nut." 

The obelisks stood in pairs at the gates of the temple, to which 
long avenues, with rows of sphinxes on either side, conducted. 
Hehopohs was not only one of the oldest cities of Egypt, famous 
for its monuments and the worship of the bull Mnevis, but for 
many centuries it was the seat of Egyptian learning. Many 
Grecian philosophers came to Heliopolis, during its later years, 
to add to their store of knowledge from the wisdom of its priests. 

The long and glorious history of Hehopohs was suddenly 
ended by the Persian invasion, 525 b. c. From that time, though 
the priests afterwards restored the worship of the Sun-god, in- 
carnate in the sacred buH Mnevis, the city has remained deserted. 



184 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

According to Herodotus, Cambyses, the son of Cyrus, when a 
youth of ten years, promised his mother that when he became a 
man he would 'Hurn Egypt upside down." The promise was 
loyally kept. We have no history of the details of the destruc- 
tion of the sacred city and can only judge of what was done by 
the cruel and sacrilegious character of the Persians and the con- 
dition in which it was afterwards found by Greek and Roman 
travelers. When Strabo visited it, five hundred years later, 
24 B. c, twelve years before the erection of our obelisk in Alex- 
andria, he found only a deserted city, but the faithful priests, 
tenaciously clinging to the old religion, were still worshipping in 
the ruined temple. He says: 

^' Here in Heliopolis, upon a large mound, one sees the Temple 
of the Sun where the bull Mnevis is kept in a sanctuary. He is 
regarded as a god, as the Apis is at Memphis. In the front of the 
mound are lakes fed by the neighboring canal. The city is now 
wholly deserted. Its ancient temple, built in the Egyptian style, 
bears numerous marks of the fury and sacrilegious spirit of 
Cambyses, who ravaged the holy buildings, mutilating them 
with fire and violence. In this manner he injured the obelisks. 
Two of these monuments that were not greatly damaged were 
taken to Rome. There are others of these obelisks, both here 
and at Thebes, now Diospolis, some standing, much eaten by 
fire, and others thrown down and lying on the ground." 

From this description, the cause of the rounding of the base 
of Cleopatra's Needle and the injured condition of its sides is 
evident. It and its companion were probablj^ lying on the ground 
at Heliopolis from the time of the Persian invasion until they 
were removed by the Romans to Alexandria. They were not 
only thrown down and otherwise injured by Cambyses, but they 
suffered from the alkalies of the soil and the fires of the natives 
who prepared their food beside them for five hundred years. 




The Obelisk, Cleopatra's Xeeclle, in Central Park, Xew York, 



1 



History of the Obelisk 185 

Heliopolis is but an hour's drive from Cairo. The first object 
seen is its soUtary obehsk in the distant fields. There are a few 
low mounds in the vicinity and occasional ruins protruding from 
the soil. These and the lone obeUsk are the only marks of the 
site of the once famous city. This obelisk is the oldest of the 
large obelisks that have been discovered. It was erected by 
Usertesen I of the twelfth dynasty, nearly a thousand years 
earUer than the time of Thutmosis III. Centuries before Abra- 
ham was born, even before the recorded time of the flood, the 
priests of On (Heliopolis) read the deeply cut inscriptions on this 
obelisk that we read to-day. The same inscription is repeated 
on each side. The translation is as follows: — 

"TheHoroftheSun, 
The life for those who are born, 
The king of the upper and lower land, 
Khepher-ka-ra. 
The lord of the double crown, 
The life of those who are born, 
The son of the Sun-god Ra, 
Usertesen. 

The friend of the spirit of On, 
Ever living, 
The golden Hor, 
The life of those who are born. 
The good god, 
Kheper-ka-ra, 
Has erected this work, 

In the beginning of the thirty years cycle, 
He the dispenser of life forever." 

Usertesen was one of the great kings of the twelfth dynasty 
and had a prosperous reign of forty-five years, including ten 



1 86 Kgypt and its Betrayal 

years in which he was associated with his father. In the third 
year of his reign, after counseling with the high officials of his 
court, he ordered the *' raising of worthy buildings to the Sun- 
god Ra." He either restored or enlarged the temple, which was 
already ancient even in that remote period. When the great 
gate was finished, he erected at its entrance a pair of obelisks, of 
which the obelisk now standing was one. Its companion was 
often mentioned by the old Greek and Arab writers, and re- 
mained standing till a. d. 1160, when it fell and was broken.^ 
The pyramidions of these obelisks were covered with copper 
caps, which, according to these writers, were of great weight and 
value. They also had figures carved upon them. 

The New York obelisk, before its removal from the sacred city 
of Heliopolis, had long outlived its own civilization. It had 
passed through the whole of Egypt's golden period. It had 
looked down upon the boy Moses, as he went daily, with the 
noble youths of the land, to receive instruction from the priests 
of the Temple of the Sun; and Moses, on his part, beheld with 
admiration the then golden hieroglyphs, that so long puzzled 
the wise men of modern times, but which he read as a student 
reads his Latin. It had beheld the chosen people of God in the 
days of their oppression and witnessed the excitement at the 
time of the Exodus — the hurrying to and fro of the priests of 
the temple and the groups of the people in the public places of 
the city discussing the great event. 

It had afterwards watched for eight centuries the passing of 
the generations during the reign of the Pharaohs, and had looked 
down not only upon these monarchs, but upon all the long lines 
of scholars who came to seek knowledge in this famous city of 
learning. It had then mutely witnessed the conquest of the 

* De Lancy in his notes accompanying his translation of Abel-ul-Latif, 
from the Arabic into French, cites at length the statements of these writers 
relative to this obelisk. 



History of the Obelisk 187 

Persians and seen the city of On and its temples destroyed, and 
itself and many of its companion obelisks become victims of the 
vengeance of the sacrilegious soldiers of Cambyses. 

Afterwards, lying upon the ground, where it had been left by 
the Persians, it had seen Plato in his daily walks pursuing his 
study of philosophy and astronomy. It had then beheld the 
coming of Alexander the Great into its surrounding ruin and 
desolation and his warm reception by the people as their deliverer 
from the yoke of the Persians; and later, the three hundred 
years' reign of the Ptolemies. 

On the coming of the Csesars, it had left the ruin and decay of 
its inland town and been transferred to the busy seaport of Alex- 
andria. Here, standing upon the seashore, a beacon to mariners 
for nineteen hundred years, it watched the rolling waves and 
the coming and going of the ships on the one side and the kaleido- 
scope of human events on the other. 

Rebellions and insurrections, invasions and conquests; the 
struggles between paganism and Christianity, between Christi- 
anity and Mohammedanism and between the different dynasties 
of Arabs and Turks; the successive reigns of Sultans, Khalifs 
and Mamelukes ; the conquest of Napoleon and the land and sea 
battles between the English and French were all seen by this 
ancient monument while standing at Alexandria. What it is 
to see during the coming centuries, in its new home within a 
metropolis that had not even an existence when it was three 
thousand years old, can only be related by historians to be born 
in the distant future. 

The ancient Egyptians had a literature far surpassing that of 
any other of the early peoples. Only a small part of it has come 
to us. Many hundreds of inscriptions, however, have been pre- 
served on stone and papyrus. The more they are studied the 
greater is the admiration of the scholar. Some of these inscrip- 
tions are historical; others relate to religious beliefs. 



1 88 Egypt and its Betrayal 

Of all the Egyptian writings, the inscriptions on the obelisks 
are the least interesting. They are devoted to the boastful self- 
praises of the kings and the affirmation of their descent from the 
gods. Those on the pyramidion and the central columns of the 
New York obelisk were inscribed by Thutmosis III. Nearly 
three hundred years later, Ramses II used the vacant space on 
each side of the central column. He was not only famous for his 
numerous and great works, but he was also the great appropriator 
of the works of his predecessors for the record of his own name 
and fame. The two outer columns which he inscribed on each 
face of the obelisk tell us of his abundant years, his great vic- 
tories, and that he is the son of the Sun-god Ra, the issue of his 
loins. 

Four hundred years later, Osarken I placed close to the outer 
edge of each face, near the base of the obelisk, inscriptions in- 
forming succeeding generations that he was the king of Upper 
and Lower Egypt, and a descendant of the Sun-god. This king, 
under the Bible name of Zerah, was defeated by Asa in a great 
battle in the south of Palestine.^ 

On the east face of the pyramidion, Thutmosis III is repre- 
sented as a sphinx couchant on a pedestal, holding in his hands 
two vases and in the act of offering a libation to the hawk- 
headed Ra-Harmachis, the Sun-god of On (Heliopolis). Thut- 
mosis is here called, ''The Good God," "Lord of the Two Lands" 
(Upper and Lower Egypt), ''Men-Kheper-Ra," and ''The Bull 
of Victory arisen in Thebes, son of the Sun, Thutmosis." Under 
the vases in the half-effaced inscription may be read, "Giving 
Wine." 

The central column of hieroglyphs, that of Thutmosis III, on 
the east face of the obelisk, is translated as follows: 

1 II Chron. XIV, 9-13. 



History of the Obelisk 189 



Banner-name 
"The crowned Horus 
Bull of Victory- 
Arisen in Thebes. 



" The lord of the Vulture and Urseus crowns 
Prolonged as to kingdom, 
Even as the sun in the heavens. 
By Tum lord of On begotten, 
Son of his loins, who hath been 
fashioned by Thot, 

Whom they created in the great-temple 
With the perfections of their flesh, 
Knowing what he was to perform. 
Kingdom prolonged through ages. 
King of Upper and Lower Egypt 
Men-kheper-ra (Thutmosis III), 
Loving Tum, the great god. 
With his cycle of divinities, 
Who giveth all life stay and sway, 
Like the sun forever." 

Central colunm, north face. 

Banner-name 
"The crowned Horus 
Tall with the southern crown 
Loving Ra. 

" The king of Upper and Lower Egypt, 
Men-kheper-ra (Thutmosis III), 
The golden Horus, content with victory. 



I go Egypt and its Betrayal 

Who smiteth the rulers of the nations — 

Hundreds of thousands; 

In as much as father Ra 

Hath ordered unto him 

Victory against every land, 

Gathered together; 

The valor of the scimeter 

In the palms of his hands 

To broaden the bounds of Egypt; 

Son of the Sun, Thutmosis III, 

Who giveth all life forever." 



Inscriptions of Ramses II 
Translation of the south column of the east face. 

Banner-name 
"The crowned Horus, 
Bull of victory 
Son of Kheper-ra. 

"The king of Upper and Lower Egypt 
User-ma-ra (Ramses II). 
The chosen of Ra, the golden Horus 
Rich in years, great in victory. 
Son of the Sun, Ramses II, 
Who came forth from the womb 
To receive the crowns of Ra; 
Fashioned was he to be the sole ruler. 
The lord of the Two Lands, 
User-ma-ra (Ramses II), 
The chosen of Ra, son of the Sun, 
Ramessu Meiamun (Ramses II), 



/rwm 




i^ST cj ft- ^W 
4K Mt ' ii i ■- A <» 

■fii{-Ii] 







ffAS 
'1 










If'? 






'-'7 






M 

Sin 

























/ifmrs 




4v-l 









— — I h - -^ 



The Hieroglyphics on the Four Sides of the 
Obelisk in Central Park, New York. 



History of the Obelisk igi 

Glorified of Osiris 

Like the Sun life-giving forever." 

North Column. 

Banner-name 
" The crowned Horus 
Bull of Victory 
Loving Ra. 

" The king of Upper and Lower Egypt 
User-ma-ra (Ramses II), 
The chosen of Ra, 
The Sun born of divinities. 
Taking the Two Lands, 
Son of the Sun, 

Ramessu Meiamun (Ramses II) ; 
The youth 
Beautiful for love, 
Like the orb of the Sun 
When he shines in the horizon, 
The lord of the Two Lands, 
User-ma-ra (Ramses II), 
The chosen of Ra, 
Son of the Sun 
Ramessu Meiamun, 
Glorified of Osiris, 
Life giving like the Sun forever." 

There are also some nearly effaced hieroglyphics at the bottom 
of the obelisk. They have been translated as: ''Life gracious- 
god, Ramses II." This phrase is repeated several times at the 
bottom of each face. 

The other inscriptions on the different sides of the obelisk are 



IQ2 Egypt and its Betrayal 

of the same character and to a large extent repetitions of those 
of which the translations have been given. 

On two sides of the pyramidion, Ramses III, as a sphmx 
couchant, is represented as offering hbations to the Sun-god, 
Ra-Harmachis (the rising sun) and on the other two sides to 
Turn (the setting sun). 



what Egypt Has Done for England 193 



CHAPTER XVIII 

WHAT EGYPT HAS DONE FOR ENGLAND — THE SUEZ CANAL 

Soon after my first arrival in Cairo, the remnant of the Khe- 
divial army, which had met with disastrous defeat in an attempt 
to invade Abyssinia, retm'ned to Egypt. The facts of the losses 
of the campaign had till that time been mostly concealed. 

In August of the previous year, the Khedive had sent to Masso- 
wah two thousand men to invade Abyssinia for the purpose of 
obtaining redress for continued grievances. It was claimed that 
the Abyssinians, in their raids in search of booty, crossed over 
their border into the Sudan, driving off cattle and committing 
other depredations. The Khedivial troops were met by King 
Johannes with an army of natives, claimed to have numbered 
thirty thousand, and were almost wholly annihilated. Only 
about thirty men escaped the massacre. 

As soon as it could be prepared, an army of sixteen thousand 
men was sent to retrieve the lost prestige of the Egyptians. It 
was under the nominal command of Prince Hassan, a youthful 
son of the Khedive, who had received a military education in 
England, but the real commander was Ratif Pasha, who had 
acquired some distinction by his services in the Sudan. 

General Loring accompanied him in the position of adviser. 
According to the account which the General personally gave 
the writer, the Khedive, in his presence, enjoined Ratif Pasha 
to follow strictly his advice in every military movement. 



1 94 -^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

General Loring was a resident of Florida. When only a lad 
he ran away from home, went to Texas and engaged in the war 
then being carried on by the people of that state, under General 
Sam Houston, against the Mexicans under Santa Anna. He 
served as an officer under General Scott in the Mexican War, and 
distinguished himself at the storming of one of the gates of the 
City of Mexico, where he lost an arm. He was afterwards en- 
gaged in our Indian wars on the western frontier and, at the 
commencement of the War of Secession, was a colonel in our 
army. He resigned his commission, entered the Confederate 
service, became a General, and was a good fighting officer, but 
never achieved more than a moderate success. 

Some years after the close of this war, being out of employment, 
he entered the Khedivial army with the rank of a general. He 
claimed to have been engaged in seventy-five battles. He was 
a very agreeable and interesting gentleman, but he had the hot 
Southern blood and an ungovernable temper, and this peculiarity 
contributed not a little, according to the opinion of high Egyp- 
tian officials, to the disastrous results of the Abyssinian campaign. 

The Egyptian army, after some days' march into the interior, 
was met by the Abyssinians and defeated with great loss. Gen- 
eral Loring's advice was completely ignored. According to his 
views, if it had been followed, the army would have been suc- 
cessful. The more recent experiences of the Italians, however, 
clearly prove that the invasion of Abyssinia is a difliicult task. 
The success of the English in 1868 was due to discords among 
the Abyssinians and the want of a centralized governing power. 

The second Egyptian defeat was not as disastrous as the first 
one, nor even as that suffered by the Italians. The Abyssinians 
themselves met with severe losses, and the Egyptian Govern- 
ment was enabled to withdraw its army, and re-establish peace 
on what was called ''honorable terms." 

The Khedive probably sent his first small expedition to Masso- 



what Egypt Has Done for England 195 

wah with the intention of taking and holding a small province 
lying between that place and the Sudan. No less ambitious a 
design than the conquering of Abyssinia, or a considerable part 
of it, would have prompted the sending of so large and expensive 
an expedition as the second. In addition to the loss of life, the 
cost was over $5,000,000. The army was transferred from dif- 
ferent parts of Egypt to Suez and thence by water over one thou- 
sand miles to Massowah. All of the provisions of the commis- 
sariat and, to a large extent, the means of their transportation 
into a physically difficult and hostile country, without roads 
or civiUzation, were also shipped from Suez. 

The Khedive had already conquered and added to his posses- 
sions an immense extent of territory in Central Africa. His name 
was a power from the mouths of the Nile to its sources in the 
Albert and Victoria Nyanzas, a distance by the way of the river 
of over three thousand miles. 

Over all this territory he held undisputed sway. His word 
was law; and the life and Uberty of six millions of people in Egypt 
proper, and as many more in the Sudan and Central Africa, were 
subject to his arbitrary will. The Abyssinian campaign was the 
first check to his grand schemes of territorial aggrandizement, 
and his disappointment can easily be understood. 

It would be assuming too much good nature and too gentle a 
disposition in an Oriental potentate to suppose that he was in 
good humor on learning the real facts. His native officers, to 
avoid their own disgrace, put the blame upon the Americans, 
thereby very much increasing for them the difficulties of getting 
a settlement of their accounts, when they were discharged two 
years later. 

Accusations were especially made against General Loring and 
Colonel Dye. No one had fought more bravely, nor done more 
to save the Egyptians from defeat, than the latter. Yet, when 
no facts could be found to sustain any other charge, an order 



196 ^^^gypt ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

was issued for his arrest and trial before a court-martial for hav- 
ing struck with his hand one of his inferior native officers. The 
stat(; of feeling was such that the Colonel came to the Consulate- 
General, demanding protection, and remained there several days. 
After I had had several interviews with the Khedive, the matter 
was dropped and, on the Colonel's discharge two years after- 
wards, I obtained for him an indemnity of five thousand dollars 
on account of a wound received in the Abyssinian battle, from 
whicli he was still suffering. The same amount was obtained 
for Colonel Colston also on account of loss of health in the Sudan. 

After long and tedious negotiations, the accounts of all the 
Americans who had served as officers in the Khedivial army, 
about forty in number, were satisfactorily settled and paid. 

In l<]gyi)tian finance, the Abyssinian War was ''the last straw 
that broke the camel's back." During the organization of the 
company for the construction of the Suez Canal, after M. de 
Lesscps had sold all that was possible in Europe of the capital 
stock of 200,000,0()() francs, there still remained unsold 177,642 
shares out of the whole number of 400,000. Said Pasha, then 
Viceroy of Egypt, subscribed, in the name of his Government, 
for all of these remaining shares a sum amounting to over 
$17,500,000. 

At the time of the preparations for the second Abyssinian 
expedition, the financial situation of Egypt became serious. 
Not only was ten, twelve and even fourteen per cent interest paid 
on the amounts received on loans, but as high as two per cent a 
month was paid on temporary loans and for carrying overdue 
obligations. Up to this time the Khedive had not defaulted in 
his payments, but he found it difficult to procure the means 
necessary for his expensive Abyssinian campaign. In his em- 
barrassment, he was negotiating for a loan on the pledge of his 
canal shares as security for its payment. 

The French bankers thought they had within reach an oppor- 



what Egypt Has Done for England 197 

tunity for another ricli, usurious contract. Ten and twelve per 
cent interest was demanded. There was an attempt to form a 
syndicate in Paris to make the loan. The amount to be raised 
was large and the procuring of the money difficult. Some of the 
bankers whose aid was asked had affiliations in London. Acting 
under the influence of their London associaties they ''threw cold 
water on the undertaking" and retarded the negotiations. Ap- 
plication was made to the French Ministry for aid. It was argued 
that the securing of the Suez Canal shares was a transaction of 
such national importance that the Government should not only 
lend its influence but should aid financially. 

It was expected by those attempting to forrri the syndicate 
that, through the loan, they would become the owners of the 
stock, and that the loan would in effect be a purchase. M. l)e- 
cazes, then the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, was courting 
the English. He was very desirous of their friendship, on account 
of the strained relations between France and Germany, and did 
not wish in any manner to take the risk of offending them. 
Through his diplomatic representative in London, he informed 
Lord Derby, the English Minister of Foreign Affairs, that there 
was a report that the Khedive was negotiating with a French 
financial company for the sale of his Suez Canal shares and asked 
if England would have any objection to such sale. The prompt 
answer was, ''Certainly England would be opposed to these; 
shares beconjing the property of a French company." 

Disraeli saw and quickly seized the opportunity. He coun- 
selled with the Ilothschilds and they agreed to furnish the money, 
take the stock and wait the future confirmation of the purchase 
by an act of Parliament. Within less than three days, the Suez 
Canal shares were the property of England and the certificates 
in the possession of the English Consul-General in Cairo. Dis- 
raeli acted without authority, but, in the eyes of the English, 
he was in the position of a General who, by disregarding or acting 



198 Egypt and its Betrayal 

without orders, has won a great victory. The act of Parliament 
was easily obtained. The commissions of the Rothschilds in 
this transaction, in addition to the interest on the money loaned, 
amounted to half a million dollars. 

Disraeli said to the Khedive, through his diplomatic repre- 
sentative in Cairo, '' We will buy the Suez Canal shares, advance 
the money, and require only the payment of five per cent interest 
on the amount of the purchase money during the period for which 
the interest coupons and the right to dividends has been taken 
by the Canal Company." This was half the minimum rate of 
interest Egypt was then paying. The Khedive caught at the 
alluring offer and the purchase was completed before the French 
had had an intimation of the negotiations. Egypt then had re- 
maining 176,602 shares of its canal stock. These were trans- 
ferred to England for £3,976,583. It was a ''grand coup" for 
Disraeli, but a death blow to the Khedive, the most serious 
political as well as financial mistake of his life. 

In the settlement of one of M. de Lesseps' claims, the interest 
and dividend coupons of these bonds had been cut off and trans- 
ferred to his company for the intervening time up to 1895. 
During the remainder of this period, Egypt agreed to pay and 
did pay to England, five per cent per annum on the money ad- 
vanced for the canal shares, that is, about $1,000,000 per annum. 

A year later than the end of this period, November, 1896, these 
shares were worth in London £23,841,270. In dollars, the 
amount paid was $19,256,661, and the value at the time named 
was $115,391,746, leaving England a net profit of $96,135,085— 
a sum equal to the original cost of the canal. England had also 
received up to that date two per cent more annual interest on 
the money advanced than she paid on her own obligations. 
Since that time, the net income of the canal has been so largely 
increased that the price of the stock has risen in the market to 
nine times its par value, which would give England a profit of 



what Egypt Has Done for England 199 

over $130,000,000 besides the high rate of interest and, since 
1896, the dividends she has received. According to a statement 
published by the House of Commons in 1884, this difference of 
interest which was figured at one and one-half per cent had 
already liquidated nearly $500,000 (£99,414) of the debt created 
on account of the purchase of these canal shares. 

This immense pecuniary profit is only a small part of what 
England has gained by the transaction. She has gained Egypt 
itself with its Central African provinces and the Sudan, territory 
sufficient for an empire. From the moment of the purchase, she 
regarded the canal as an EngUsh possession and, 'Ho protect 
her interest," it was necessary from an English standpoint to 
control the country through which it passed. From that time 
on, this has been her purpose. In every move on the diplomatic 
chess-board, this purpose has been kept in view by England's 
controlling statesmen. Nor have there been any scruples about 
the employment of means that would aid in its realization. 

France, since the time of the conquest in Egypt of the first 
Napoleon, had tried to maintain a preponderance of political in- 
fluence in that country. England had been her constant and 
powerful rival preventing the realization of her ambition. 

France, through one of her citizens, had obtained the grant 
of the Suez Canal franchise. A French company, by the aid of 
the then powerful Napoleon III, succeeded in constructing the 
canal against the wishes and the strong active opposition of 
England, both in Egypt and at Constantinople. The French, 
on the completion of this great work, believed that they had 
obtained a permanent advantage over the English. Marseilles 
was to become a Liverpool and France was to maintain a domi- 
nating influence in the land of the Nile. 

England soon learned that the canal, contrary to her former 
opinion, was of much more importance and benefit to her than 
to all other nations. From the time of her full realization of this 



2 00 Egypt and its Betrayal 

fact, it is not improbable that she had her eyes on the Khedive's 
canal shares. Absolute secrecy was necessary for success; other- 
wise, the French would have protested, and either made the pur- 
chase or prevented the sale. When the opportune moment 
arrived, no time was lost. 

It has been said by those who assume to have a knowledge of 
the facts that M. de Lesseps was in the secret and privately aided 
the English in the purchase. This may have been true, though 
it is not probable. It is claimed, on the other hand, that he was 
very active in his efforts to form the French syndicate for the 
purchase of the stock. His interest, however, at that time, was 
in the revenue and the consequent value of the stock. He fore- 
saw that, if the English were interested, the business of the canal 
and its revenues would be increased. It is certain that he never 
manifested any hostile feelings against the Khedive on account 
of this transaction. The French people, however, never forgave 
his Highness. Nothing that he did afterwards pleased them. 

M. de Lesseps was undoubtedly correct in saying soon after 
the purchase that it would be an advantage to the company. 
The English interest, thus acquired, became, in fact, a valuable 
aid in augmenting the revenues of the canal. This arose not so 
much from the increase of tonnage passing through the canal on 
account of the purchase as from England's aid in fixing and main- 
taining the tolls. Without this interest, England would not have 
remained silent while paying tolls on her immense tonnage trans- 
ported through the canal, in consequence of which the price of 
the stock has increased to nine times its par value. She would 
have long since found '^ just cause " of complaint and demanded 
and enforced reduction. 

There are other reasons for the phenomenal rise in the value 
of the canal shares. The canal nominally cost about $91,000,000. 
Of this sum 200,000,000 francs were realized for stock, 100,000,000 
were borrowed and 124,000,000 were wrongfully taken from 



what Egypt Has Done for England 201 

Egypt by and as a result of an award of Napoleon III. There 
was an interest account which made up the balance of the nomi- 
nal cost of the canal. Of the capital from which the canal was 
constructed, Egypt paid for her canal shares 88,801,000 francs 
of principal which, added to the 124,000,000 mentioned, make 
212,801,000 francs. All the other stockholders paid for their 
stock only 111,101,000 francs. Thus Egypt furnished of the 
capital stock, in dollars, 40,000,000 and all the other stock- 
holders 22,000,000. The 124,000,000 francs ($24,000,000) were 
taken from Egypt in a manner that cannot be too severely 
characterized. It was a disgraceful national fraud. 

The Suez Canal project, with all its disastrous consequences to 
Egypt, was a legacy to Ismail Pasha left by his immediate prede- 
cessor, Said Pasha. The original grants for the construction of 
the canal and the various privileges mentioned in them were 
made '^subject to the ratification of his Imperial Majesty the 
Sultan." They had no validity without such ratification. ^'As 
to the work of excavating the canal, it was to be commenced 
after the authorization of the Sublime Porte." The work, how- 
ever, was commenced in the spring of 1859, without the authori- 
zation of the Porte, and was continued under these conditions 
for four years. 

On the granting of the first concession, England commenced 
at Constantinople and Cairo strenuous opposition to the whole 
scheme of the canal. One of the arguments presented to the 
Sultan was that, under the guise of workmen, regiments of 
Zouaves would be introduced into and take possession of Egypt. 
To obviate this objection, which the Sultan made at the insti- 
gation of Lord Palmers ton, M. de Lesseps had inserted in a second 
act of concession a clause providing that ''four-fifths of the la- 
borers should be Egyptians." 

In one of the acts of concession, the canal company was ceded 
the right to excavate a canal to conduct fresh water from the 



2 02 Egypt and its Betrayal 

Nile to the Suez Canal. It provided, furthermore, that, in case 
of the construction of such a canal, Egypt was to ''abandon to 
the company" all the then unoccupied desert lands that might 
be irrigated by its waters with the right of the navigation of the 
canal and other privileges — all of which grants were subject to the 
ratification of the Sultan. 

When M. de Lesseps was ready to commence work, he said 
to the Viceroy that there should be an agreement as to the price 
to be paid the laborers. An agreement was made fixing the 
price for adults at fifteen cents a day, for those under twelve 
years of age at twelve and a half cents, with an allowance of 
five cents a day to each class for food. It was the children that 
to a large extent carried the dirt out and emptied it on the 
banks. 

The pay would have been adequate had it been for work in 
the cultivated parts of Egypt and near the villages of the labor- 
ers, but, under the conditions which actually prevailed, it was 
a mere pittance. 

The canal was constructed across the desert at a distance 
varying from fifteen to sixty miles east of the cultivated land. 
During the first four years of the work, not only the provisions 
but the water for the use of the laborers were conveyed across 
this strip of desert on camels. Sixteen hundred camels and 
upwards, furnished by Egypt, were constantly employed for 
this purpose. During the same period, twenty to twenty-five 
thousand people were furnished by the corvee, or forced labor, 
to work on the canal. These were replaced, at periods of one 
to three months, by fresh levies. 

According to information obtained from those who were 
cognizant of the facts, even the small sums agreed upon for the 
laborers were, for the most part, not paid to them, but to the 
Viceroy, Said Pasha. In proceedings afterwards instituted, it 
was admitted that nearly a million dollars (4,500,000 francs) of 



what Egypt Has Done for England 203 

the small airiounts due to these people, a large proportion of 
whom were children, had not been paid to anyone. What is 
more, it was never paid. It was offset against interest on dam- 
ages claimed for not continuing to furnish the corvee laborers. 

The Viceroy, Said Pasha, and M. de Lesseps had, in their 
younger days, been friends when the father of the latter was the 
representative of France in Egypt. The acts of concession were 
"To my devoted friend of high birth and elevated rank, M. 
Ferdinand de Lesseps." The Pasha was a man of moderate 
mental capacity and during the last years of his reign in delicate 
health. The influence over him of the vigorous, polite and ever 
fascinating M. de Lesseps was nearly unlimited. This accounts 
in a large degree for some of the remarkable conditions under 
which the work of the canal was carried on until after his 
death. 

During the time the work was being done under the acts of 
concession, void, by their very terms, on account of not having 
been approved and ratified by the Sultan, the English Am- 
bassador at Constantinople had been ceaseless in his efforts to 
throw obstacles in the way of the enterprise. As an argument 
to induce his Imperial Majesty not only passively to withhold 
his ratification of the concession, but to intervene actively and 
stop the work, he claimed that a French colony would be estab- 
lished on the desert land to be irrigated by the fresh water 
canal, the excavation of which had been commenced by the 
canal company, and that this colony would put in jeopardy his 
sovereignty in Egypt. It was also claimed that the corvee 
laborers were cruelly treated and were dying like flies. 

The question of the French colony on the then desert lands 
was disposed of by the canal company. It is probable that 
intimations of the Sultan's apprehension were communicated to 
M. de Lesseps by the French Ambassador at Constantinople and 
that these had their influence. There were other weighty rea- 



2 04 Egypt and its Betrayal 

sons for the company's action. Its funds were nearly exhausted 
and it was evident that it would be unable to construct a fresh 
water canal of sufficient capacity to meet its needs. It was 
also evident that the value of the desert lands, if they could be 
utilized at all, would not exceed the cost of putting them in a 
condition for cultivation. 

Ismail Pasha had become Viceroy and it was with him that 
negotiations were thenceforward to be conducted. It had been 
learned that the canal, to give sufficient water, instead of con- 
necting with an irrigating canal near Zagazig, must be con- 
tinued to Cairo. Under the claim that the company's owner- 
ship of this canal might lead to complications with the people 
along the line and with the Government, the company pro- 
posed to renounce their right to construct it, and persuaded the 
Viceroy to accept this renunciation and undertake the work 
himself. The company at the same time retroceded to Egypt 
the land granted to it which it was supposed could be irrigated 
by this canal. 

A few days later, April 6, 1863, the Sultan, in a despatch, 
communicated to the parties interested the condition on which 
he would ratify the concessions, viz.: that the clause in one of the 
acts stipulating 'Hhat four-fifths of the laborers employed in 
the work on the canal should be Egyptians" should be abro- 
gated. This condition was accepted by all the parties in- 
terested. 

The Viceroy, therefore, in obedience to the Sultan, discon- 
tinued furnishing laborers by the corvee. The concessions hav- 
ing been made subject to the ratification of the Sultan, and the 
retrocession of the lands and of the rights of constructing the 
fresh water canal having not only been made voluntarily, but 
on the initiative and in accordance with the expressed wishes 
of the company, the Viceroy believed, and had good reasons for 
believing, that the matter was closed. He had not then fully 



what Egypt Has Done for England 205 

learned all the lessons of diplomacy. M. de Lesseps was an 
adept in that line, a most accomplished diplomat. 

The company needed and must have more money or its enter- 
prise would be a failure. The work had not progressed far 
enough to permit loans sufficient for its continuance. Said 
Pasha had saved the company from failure at an early day by 
taking the stock that could not be sold elsewhere, thus add- 
ing to the company's available assets 88,801,000 francs. Why 
should not Ismail, in the commencement of his reign, do even 
better? It was during the American War of Secession. Cot- 
ton was high and Egypt was supposed to possess untold wealth. 
Certainly, in a country where events often produce the most 
unexpected results, the chances of success were worth the 
trial. 

The attack was begun. 

First: a large claim was made for damages for not furnishing 
the corvee labor. 

Second: another, for the desert land that had been retroceded. 

Third: another, for the amount that had been expended on 
the abandoned canal. 

Fourth: another, for the amount that it was estimated it 
would cost to complete the canal. 

Fifth: still another, for the value of the water which the com- 
pleted canal would furnish. 

The Viceroy was alarmed, but his objections were wholly 
disregarded. The French Consul-General and M. de Lesseps 
were persistent in their demands. Finally, the whole matter 
was submitted to Napoleon III as sole arbiter. He was then 
the all powerful monarch of Europe. The Viceroy had abso- 
lute confidence in his Imperial Majesty, and no suspicion of 
disastrous results. 

The award was quickly prepared by French attorneys and 
signed by Napoleon. It astonished the jurists of all Europe, 



2o6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

and, had it not been of so serious a character, would have been 
regarded as a judicial curiosity. 

His majesty awarded the company 38,000,000 francs dam- 
ages on account of the withholding of the corvee labor. 

He found further that the company could not be considered 
as having retroceded the land and the benefits they would have 
received from the fresh water canal, except on the supposition 
that it was to be reimbursed for these lands and the benefits 
they would have received under the concession. On this find- 
ing, he awarded the company: 30,000,000 francs for 60,000 
hectares of desert land (about 120,000 acres) that it was as- 
sumed could be irrigated by this canal; 10,000,000 francs that 
the company claimed to have expended on the canal including 
some interest on damages; and 6,000,000 francs, on account of 
water that the company had thought might be sold to outside 
parties. 

The whole award amounted to 84,000,000 francs. 

It was also decided by the award that the company was en- 
titled to all the benefits it would have derived from the canal, 
had it been constructed at its own expense, such as tolls, right 
of navigation and the use of all the fresh water needed for the 
success of its enterprise. The amount of water to be received 
was fixed at 70,000 cubic metres per day. The canal was 
necessarily large and nearly 100 miles in length. It was con- 
structed at a cost of 50,000,000 francs and was to be perpet- 
ually cleaned and kept in repair by Egypt. The canal com- 
pany was to receive its waters gratuitously. Egypt was to pay 
the company 30,000,000 francs, for the worthless land it was 
supposed might be irrigated with its waters, 10,000,000 francs 
on account of labor done on the canal and certain interest on 
supposed damages, and 6,000,000 francs for water that it was 
expected the company could sell to other parties! That is, 
Egypt gratuitously gives the company the right to construct 



what Egypt Has Done for England 207 

a canal and to receive the benefits therefrom. She gives also 
certain lands that might be irrigated with its waters. The project 
is abandoned by the canal company and the land is retroceded 
unconditionally. Egypt, however, must construct the canal at 
her own expense, and the canal company is to receive not onl}^ 
the benefits of its waters, but also compensation for all the lands 
it might have irrigated, had not the company otherwise used 
its waters! 

But the end was not yet in sight. The wonderful success of 
this attack on the treasury of Egypt only encouraged the mak- 
ing of others. The company had forgotten some of its "just 
claims." A second attack was prepared. The second claims 
were, like the first, utterly groundless. That was of no im- 
portance. They were claims, and a claim made at that time 
by one who had as a supporter the great and all powerful Na- 
poleon III must be considered as an obligation. A Frank 
could never be considered in the wrong. This non-Christian 
people had not then learned all the righteous ways of the en- 
lightened and superior Christian nations. The 84,000,000 francs 
and the 50,000,000 francs to be expended on the fresh water 
canal for the use of the company were not enough to meet its 
needs. The pound of flesh was not sufficient. 

Among the newly discovered ''just claims" was a large one 
for buildings for the Egyptian laborers, so-called " hospitals and 
barracks," which were now asserted to be useless to the com- 
pany because of the discontinuance of the corvee laborers. This 
was, in efi'ect, an admission that the company was to have no 
more work done by hand-labor, that is, that the Egyptians were 
not to be employed. The fact was, that at the time of the award 
the part of the labor which could be performed by the Egyptians, 
in their simple way of removing the earth, had been nearly or 
quite completed. 

The canal was to be twenty-six feet deep and seventy-two 



2o8 Egypt and its Betrayal 

feet wide at its base, with a water line varying from two hundred 
to three hundred feet in breadth. The banks formed by the 
earth removed were on either side very high. In the dry dig- 
gings, this earth was dug up by adults and carried up the steep, 
high banks to a great extent by corvee children. But a large 
part of the distance was not dry land. From the Mediterranean 
side, the canal was constructed thirty-four miles through the 
shallow waters of Lake Menzaleh and its marshy lagoons. 
These waters were one to three feet deep. The roadstead ex- 
cavated in this lake at Port Said was nine hundred feet wide 
and on a narrow strip of sand beach separating the lake from 
the sea. Near Suez, there were also extensive marshy lagoons. 
In other places, as soon as the sandy top was removed, infiltra- 
tion commenced. The water was pouring into the unfinished 
channels. The Egyptians were good swimmers, but the children 
could not dive into the water and bring up the soft mud from 
the bottom. The balance of the work must be done with dredges. 

This condition had been foreseen and the necessary provisions 
made. The dredging machines had been ordered and constructed 
and were already at work when the award was made. Yet one 
of the arguments suppUed to Napoleon by the French attorney, 
on which his labor award w^as based, was the alleged increased 
cost of the work if done by machinery. 

Diplomacy has many tortuous and mysterious ways. In this 
case, the French Ambassador at Constantinople was able, 
through the powerful influence of Napoleon, to delay the de- 
cision of the Sultan relative to the corvee for four years, until 
there was no longer any use for this kind of labor. When this 
time arrives and the corvee work on the canal must necessarily 
be ended, the Sultan, in the interest of humanity and his solici- 
tude for the well-being and happiness of his subjects, orders the 
discontinuance of corvee labor! 

Another of the forgotten "just claims" was for the right of 



what Egypt Has Done for England 2 eg 

fishing in the famous fresh water canal! This would have be- 
longed to the canal company had it constructed the canal under 
its grant. Though it had renounced its rights to do so, and the 
work was to be done by the Egyptian Government at its own 
expense, Napoleon had decided that by this renunciation it 
had not renounced its rights to the benefits that would have 
accrued under the original concession. On this basis, one of the 
items of damages of his Majesty's award was 6,000,000 francs 
for water that might have been sold. Then why should not 
Egypt pay for the right of fishing in these prolific waters? 
Fishing rights are regarded in Egypt as valuable and the Gov- 
ernment derives from them revenues amounting to a considera- 
ble sum. In the French advocate's imagination the stream 
would be alive with piscatory species. These would increase 
like the fish on the shore of the Sea of Galilee and be brought 
forth in the simple nets of the natives in miraculous quantities. 

It is unnecessary to follow further the details of these claims. 
The Viceroy was badly frightened. He was in the condition of 
a vanquished army ready to submit to any terms of surrender. 
A settlement was agreed upon. Happily, it was to include a 
release of all claims of the company of every nature against 
Egypt. To be thus freed from further '^ discoveries," the 
Viceroy agreed to pay 30,000,000 francs. To this was added 
10,000,000 francs for a piece of property for which the com- 
pany had paid, a short time previous, 1,800,000 francs. In 
round numbers, these last two items of spoil amounted to 
$8,000,000. 

The Egyptian Government had no money with which to pay 
this little peace offering. Nothing is easier, says the bland 
M. de Lesseps. On the item of 30,000,000 francs we will ask 
no money. We will take it in the interest coupons of your canal 
stock (discounting them, of course, at the regular rate of in- 
terest which was then about ten per cent). We will only just 



2IO Egypt and its Betrayal 

ask you to throw in tlie right to dividends on the stock. The 
canal shares bore interest at the rate of five per cent from the 
time of their issue. This was to be paid before dividends could 
be made. The canal was then not completed and there were 
no revenues and consequently no dividends; neither would 
there be for a number of years. To these propositions, the 
Viceroy perforce assented. The discount computation of the 
coupons was mad(^ and 125,000,000 francs of the coupons taken 
to pay the 30,000,000. This took the coupons up to 1895. 

This is a brief statement of one of the many schemes of 
''spoiling the Egyptians." No greater fraud was ever success- 
fully perpetrated, and this upon a people to whom the per- 
petrators were sending missionaries to teach them Christianity. 

In addition to furnishing the corvee labor for four years and 
paying the sums we have stated, Egypt furnished for the use 
of the company large numbers of camels for which little was 
paid. 

Including the benefits of the corvee labor furnished, the 
amounts paid on the various claims, the costs of the sweet 
water canal and the gratuitous labor and use of the camels, 
Egypt, by the most conservative estimate, paid in addition to 
the cost of its canal shares at least one-half of the original cost 
of the canal. This estimate is not that of the writer alone, but 
of such men as Riaz Pasha, who was for a long time at the head 
of the Egyptian Ministry under the Anglo-French control, and 
of others equally capable, and cognizant of the facts. 

If the canal had been constructed under normal conditions 
by paid voluntary labor, and the company had constructed its 
own fresh water canal, the cost would have been very largely 
increased. The fresh water canal would have cost the com- 
pany double what it cost Egypt. As to the desert land, it was 
of no value whatever. 

From the account given, one of the principal causes of the 



What Egypt Has Done for England 211 

rise in the value of the canal stock will be readily seen. The 
interest coupons for over thirty years, which were to have been 
paid annually, had been taken off from over seven-sixteenths of 
the stock and transferred to the company. This alone lessened 
the fixed charges against the company $1,000,000 per year 
during this time. The right to dividends to the year 1895, 
twenty-five years from the opening of the canal, had also been 
surrendered. Thus, during this period, less than nine-sixteenths 
of the stock, about $22,000,000, received the full benefit of what 
would have cost under normal conditions at least $100,000,000, 
in addition to the bonded indebtedness of the company. The 
stock that received all these benefits was in amount only about 
one-fifth of the amount of the actual cost of that from which it 
received its revenue. Since 1895, $40,000,000 of stock has en- 
joyed these benefits. 

Had it not been for the aid voluntarily given and forcibly 
taken from Egypt, the canal could not, at that period, have 
been constructed. The enterprise would have proved a disas- 
trous failure, not as appalling, perhaps, as that of the Panama 
venture, but certainly similar to that. 

For all its loss of life and outlay of money, Egypt has received 
no benefit. The canal is not only a real, but a great damage to 
her commerce. Formerly she had an immense overland trade, 
which is now entirely lost. Heavily laden ships are constantly 
passing through the canal in the desert east of her cultivated 
lands, with no more benefit to Egypt than their passage through 
the Mediterranean. 

The conditions under which we are completing the Panama 
Canal furnish a marked and characteristic instance of the dif- 
ference between our manner of treating the small Powers of 
America and the treatment of Oriental non-Christian countries 
by the European Governments. After paying the French for 
the work they have done, we pay $10,000,000 for the right of 



2 12 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

control of sufficient lands to enable us to complete the canal 
and insure its maintenance and use. We demand no assistance 
of corvee labor, nor damages for refusal to furnish it. We do 
not ask Panama to construct at great expense a feeding-canal 
(as Egypt constructed the indispensable fresh water canal) to 
give us all the water it furnishes, and then to pay us not only 
for all the land this water might irrigate, if we had not already 
appropriated it to other uses, but for all the water which might 
have been sold — to say nothing of making claims for the right 
of navigation and fishing in its waters. 

England is in no w^ay accountable for the extortions practiced 
upon Egypt during the time of constructing the Suez Canal, but 
the benefits of the spoils are hers, to a very large extent, and 
she has no intention of returning any part of them to the people 
who were despoiled. Nearly all the commerce of the canal is 
English and to the EngUsh accrue many millions of dollars of 
benefits annually in addition to the $130,000,000 advance on 
her canal stock. 

Egypt's first loan was made to obtain money for the Suez 
Canal Company. She has paid interest, generally at a very 
high rate, on this indebtedness for about forty years, and is 
destined to continue these payments for a long, indefinite period. 
All these burdens of an oppressed people arose from concessions 
that appeared perfectly innocent. It was expressly provided 
that the canal was to be constructed wholly by the company, 
without cost to Egypt. Such is the fate of weak nations. 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 213 



CHAPTER XIX 

THE TRAGEDY OF ISMAIL SADIK PASHA 

Soon after my arrival in Egypt a characteristically Oriental 
event occurred in Cairo. I was returning from Europe to Egypt 
in October at the expiration of a two months' leave of absence. 
On the same steamer, came Hon. G. J. Goschen, M.P., late 
member of the Cabinet of Mr. Gladstone, and M. Joubert of 
Paris. They came as representatives of the English and French 
bondholders. Their mission was to arrange a settlement with 
the Khedive, Ismail Pasha, more favorable to his creditors 
than that which had been offered by his Highness. The Khedive 
claimed, what everyone at all conversant with the country knew 
to be true, that five per cent interest was all he could pay. 
This did not satisfy the bankers of Paris and London who had 
been receiving ten and twenty per cent, and often more, on 
their Egyptian loans. 

Egypt had received for the sale of its bonds an average of 
only sixty per cent, in round numbers, of their face value. On 
the last issue in 1873 of £32,000,000 it had received only a little 
over fifty per cent, or £17,000,000. This issue of bonds was 
forced upon the Khedive by a threat of exposing his financial 
condition. On a basis of six per cent interest, three-fourths of 
the nominal debt had in 1876 been paid. 

According to official documents, the correctness of which has 
never been denied, Egypt had paid in 1882 the whole of the 



2 14 Egypt and its Betrayal 

principal of the money actually received on its loans and in- 
terest at the rate of six per cent per annum. Yet this indebt- 
edness remained and still remains at the nominal amount of 
$500,000,000. On this amount of indebtedness, three-fourths 
of which, at that time, was made up of usury, Mr. Goschen in- 
sisted, with the moral support of his Government, on the pay- 
ment of interest at the rate of seven per cent per annum. He 
also asked for the formation of a commission of European con- 
trollers authorized to collect the revenues of the country and 
pay this interest direct to the bondholders. As Egypt is wholly 
an agricultural country, having no manufacturing establish- 
ments, the interest demanded would require an annual tax of 
between six and seven dollars on each acre of land, besides 
enough to meet the other large burdens of the country. A con- 
siderable part of the lands are not very productive and from 
them such a high rate of taxes could not be realized. This 
would increase the amount necessary to be obtained from the 
better classes of lands. 

Mr. Goschen was an ex-banker and broker and well fitted 
for his mission. It was a firm to which he belonged that ne- 
gotiated the first loan to Egypt made by the Khedive to pay 
the indebtedness incurred on account of the Suez Canal. Be- 
cause of his high position as a member of Parliament and a 
late member of the English Cabinet, he was selected by the 
bondholders for this work. The Khedive regarded him as a 
representative of her Majesty's Government and did not dare 
to refuse his persistent demands, though the money to comply 
with them could be procured, if at all, only by using the means 
employed by Sadik Pasha. When the English obtained full 
control, they found it necessary to reduce the interest to about 
one-half of the amount demanded by Mr. Goschen. 

Ismail Sadik Pasha was at the time of Mr. Goschen 's visit 
the Egyptian Minister of Finance. He was known as the 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 215 

Mufettish, because, previous to being Minister, he had been 
the Mufettish of the Khedive, that is, one of the superintendents 
or managers of his private estates. He was the Khedive's foster- 
brother. Although belonging to the fellah class, and having a 
very ordinary education, speaking only Arabic and writing it 
poorly, he and the Khedive as boys were much together. From 
his childhood, he had been his Highness's protege. He became 
first his secretary and, on arriving at manhood, one of the man- 
agers of his estates. In 1869 he was made Minister of Finance, 
a position which he held till his tragic death. 

He was a man of much natural abiUty, an astute and sagacious 
manager and had great influence over the Khedive. No one 
ever did the work assigned him, that of raising revenue, with 
greater tact or success. Being himself a fellah, he was able to 
ascertain the incomes and accumulations of this class. Then, 
applying the theory of autocratic law, that the fellah was only 
the steward of the Khedive to whom he, his family and all he 
possessed belonged, Sadik proceeded, in the name of his High- 
ness's Government and clothed with all the authority of the 
supreme tax imposer and collector, to obtain any surplus that 
might remain after the payment of the regular taxes. These 
were equivalent to rental rates, but if anything remained and 
was not forthcoming, he was not scrupulous as to the use of any 
means by which it might be obtained. 

In default of his demands being compUed with, crops were 
taken, and, if money or valuables were supposed to be con- 
cealed, as was often the case, imprisonment and the daily 
bastinado were resorted to until the last shilUng and the last 
treasured heirloom, and, in some cases, all that could be ob- 
tained on mortgages was pressed from the poor victim. 

The bastinado is a common means of punishment in the East. 
It consists of throwing the victim upon the ground on his breast, 
sometimes putting him in stocks, and applying a leathern whip 



2 1 6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

to the soles of the feet. It is said to produce the most ex- 
cruciating pain, but does not leave serious wounds. The fellah 
will often submit to this mode of punishment for an unlimited 
time, rather than give up his treasures. He sometimes does this 
on the theory that if he yields what he has, he will still be 
whipped on the supposition that he has more. Generally, what 
he may have has been accumulated by little savings from long 
and severe toil. He is the more tenacious from the fact that he 
well knows that, when the wolf appears at his door, he has no 
reliance for aid, except on the few sovereigns he may have 
buried beneath the dirt floor of his cabin. 

Sadik was horribly cruel in the numerous modes of extortion 
which he practiced, partly to enrich himself, as was shown by 
his accumulated wealth, but principally to meet the pressing 
demands of the creditors of the Government. His eminently 
bad qualities did not, however, prevent him from foreseeing the 
difficulties of the future and he was inexorably opposed to the 
plans of Messrs. Goschen and Joubert. Perhaps he was tired 
of the cruel methods to which he was obliged to resort to re- 
plenish the constantly exhausted treasury. He well knew that, 
even by these methods, the ever increasing wants of the Gov- 
ernment could not be supplied, for Egypt's accumulations of the 
past had already disappeared to a large extent, having gone to 
enrich the usurers of London and Paris, and replenish the 
treasury of the Sultan. 

Henceforth, there would be only the annual crops of the coun- 
try with which to meet increasing demands, and the amount thus 
obtained, even with the strictest economy, would not be suffi- 
cient to sustain the Government and pay more than five per 
cent interest on the public debt. I know he used to say in those 
days, when urgent demands were made by creditors, that the 
money could not be obtained, that one might continue to whip 
the fellahin, but it would not bring the money because they did 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 217 

not have it, and could not get it. Mr. Goschen had been previ- 
ously informed that the Mufettish was opposed to the paying 
of the high rate of interest demanded by the bondholders and 
that he would be the greatest obstacle to his obtaining the agree- 
ment which was the object of his mission. On his arrival, he 
met the Khedive and called upon all the Ministers, except the 
Mufettish whom he entirely ignored. He also informed the 
Khedive that he would have nothing to do with his Minister of 
Finance. 

Nearly a month passed in fruitless negotiations, but the 
Khedive under the pressure of the English and French Consuls- 
General began to weaken, thinking, probably, that it was best 
to yield for the moment and find means afterwards to extricate 
himself from the difficulty. In the meantime some excitement 
had been produced in the provinces and Sadik was accused by 
the English and French of attempting to create an insurrection. 
Whatever the real facts may have been, they will probably 
never be known to the public. English agents reported that 
Sadik had threatened the Khedive. There is not the least 
probability that these reports were true. 

Sadik sent in his resignation and, in his letter, warned the 
Khedive against the proposed Goschen-Joubert contract, the 
responsibility of which he refused to accept. Because of this 
and the reports made to him, the Khedive became very angry, 
but, with his accustomed ability for acting well his part, he con- 
cealed his wrath. The next day he matured his plans and yet 
appeared in his accustomed good humor. He passed the evening, 
according to those who saw him, in pleasant conversation and 
even joviality with those who were gathered at Abdtn. He was 
in the habit of taking his siesta after his midday meal and of 
sitting up very late at night, until twelve and even one and two 
o'clock. He rose early in the morning and ordinarily took a 
drive immediately afterwards. 



2 I 8 Egypt and its Betrayal 

On the second morning after the receipt of Sadik's resignation, 
his Highness arose at the usual time and sent for Sadik to ac- 
company him in his morning drive. This he had frequently 
done, when he had some important matters concerning which 
he wished to converse with his Minister. Sadik, little thinking, 
probably, of anything but friendHness, obeyed the summons 
and came to the palace. The two left Abdin together in an 
open carriage, smoking and talking as usual, crossed the Great 
Bridge at Kasr en-Nil and, turning into the boulevard, drove to 
the palace of Gezireh. They mounted the steps and entered 
the magnificent hall, which I had entered on my first visit to 
the Khedive. The door closed behind them and with it all cer- 
tain knowledge of Ismail Sadik Pasha, the all powerful Minister, 
who for seven years, so far as the people were concerned, had 
exercised an authority in matters of taxation equal if not su- 
perior to that of the Khedive, and had, by his cruelty, become 
a terror to the fella hin. The Khedive immediately came out 
of the palace, re-entered his carriage and was driven back to 
Abdin. 

Several versions have been current at different times as to 
what happened to the ex-Minis ter, perhaps none of them cor- 
rect. According to the official account, a special Council of 
Ministers was innnediately called, of which Cherif Pasha and 
Tewfik Pasha, afterwards Khedive, w^ere members. By this 
Comicil, Sadik was tried for treason, convicted and sentenced 
to banishment with close confinement at Dongola. This trial 
was private, without the presence of the prisoner, and he had 
no knowledge of the proceeding. In fact, as this Council was 
held the next day after the arrest, it was very probable that the 
prisoner was already beyond being affected by any decision it 
might make. Formerly, in Massachusetts, perhaps still, a civil 
process was commenced by the issue of an execution. In this 
case, it is supposed that the execution preceded the judgment. 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 2ig 

Dongola is a small town of Nubia, on the left bank of the Nile, 
about one thousand miles from Cairo, and the principal place of 
a small province of the same name. It was said that other 
prisoners had been banished to this place to work in the mines. 
There were, however, no prisoners there and no mines that had 
been worked within the memory of any living person. It was 
well understood in Egypt that banishment to Dongola meant 
secret capital punishment by strangulation, poisoning, or some 
other Oriental mode, and no one was deceived by any official 
declarations. 

The prisoner in such cases disappears and is never afterwards 
heard from, as was the case in the time of Louis XI and other 
Kings of France. The prisoner in France entered a myste- 
rious dungeon, '^ oubliette y'^ and was forgotten. In Egypt, he was 
supposed to have started on a voyage up the Nile, but nothing 
was ever heard from him afterwards. 

A steamer left Cairo the night after the arrest of Sadik and 
ascended the river to the First Cataract, ostensibly to convey 
the prisoner. A second steamer continued the voyage to the 
Second Cataract and, thence, a small caravan went to Dongola. 
No one was allowed to visit these steamers while they were 
ascending the Nile, and the whole proceeding was surrounded 
with as much mystery as possible. 

Sadik had the rank of Mushir, which entitled him to a trial 
at Constantinople. The Sultan, on learning of the affair, di- 
rected the Khedive to send him the prisoner. The journey to 
Dongola required about thirty days, and the Khedive waited 
for a report from that place, which was to the effect that the 
Mufettish, having taken to excessive drinking on the voyage, 
had died soon after his arrival, The certificate of a physician, 
purporting to have been made at Dongola and certifying death 
from this cause was afterwards produced. This was the official 
death. 



2 20 Egypt and its Betrayal 

As to the real death, there were several statements current m 
Cairo soon after the event. The one most generally credited was 
that the prisoner was kept in the Gezireh palace during the day 
of his arrest; that, the following night, he was taken on board 
the steamer we have mentioned, which immediately started on 
its trip up the Nile; that, at a short distance above the city, he 
was strangled, placed in a weighted sack and dropped into the 
river, the steamer continuing on its voyage as we have stated. 
All the particulars were given in detail, even to the name of the 
Pasha in charge of the steamer. 

In 1879, when Ismail Pasha had been sent away, and the 
English and French had obtained full control of the finances 
of the country, a large mmiber of names of persons who had 
received pensions from the Government, generally very small, 
were dropped from the rolls. 

Among the pensioners whose cases were thus summarily dis- 
posed of was an Arab of Upper Egypt, one Ishak Bey. He was 
a soldier at Cairo at the time of the disappearance of the Mufettish 
and of large and powerful physique. He had lost a thumb and 
enjoyed till this time a small pension. Whether he had other 
disabilities that would have entitled him to this aid from the 
Government, I do not know. On the discontinuance of the 
pension, he gave and continued to reiterate a new account of 
this mysterious tragedy. 

Mr. J. C. McCoan, an English writer with whom I was well 
acquainted in Cairo, gives this version of Ishak Bey's story: 

"About an hour after Sadik's arrest he, Ishak Bey, was sum- 
moned into a room in which Sadik was confined and there found 
Prince Hassan and the prisoner already stripped of his clothes. 
The Prince whispered to him an order to kill the Mufettish either 
by strangling or preferentially by another method of acute 
painfulness, which would leave no marks of violence. He 
adopted the latter and having thrown the victim on his back 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 221 

endeavored with his left hand to smother his cries, while with 
his right he did his deadly work. Although a sHght man, Sadik 
in his agony struggled with a strength almost equal to that of 
his murderer and, getting the Arab's left thumb in his mouth, 
bit it clean off. That on the following night, the body, wrapped 
in canvas and heavily weighted, was carried on board the wait- 
ing steamer which started up the river into which the corpse 
was flung a few miles above Cairo." 

Prince Hassan was then Minister of War and I remember his 
occupying Gezireh after my return from Europe that year. I 
called upon him according to custom and he came out of the 
building occupied by the harem, crossed the garden and re- 
ceived me in the palace. 

There is, however, much doubt about the truth of Ishak Bey's 
story. At the time of its first relation, the ex-Khedive, Ismail 
Pasha, and his son. Prince Hassan, were in exile. Those who 
then controlled Egypt lent a willing ear to every statement in 
any way injurious to Ismail and hastened to publish it in Europe. 
Arabs are always ready to make such statements as they be- 
lieve will please their hearers and Ishak probably hoped for and 
perhaps received some reward. The assertions that he found the 
prisoner naked in the presence of Prince Hassan, that he was 
ordered single handed to commit the murder, or that he could 
have accomplished the object, had he been so ordered, are all 
highly improbable. All the stories agree in stating that Sadik's 
body was thrown from the steamer into the Nile, a little above 
Cairo, on the night after his arrest. It matters little as to the 
precise manner in which he was killed, or the place of his death. 

The motive for this act on the part of the Khedive is as 
mysterious as the details of the deed. Sadik had been the 
Khedive's life-long friend, confidant and, so far as known, 
faithful servant. Many conjectures have been made, but no 
satisfactory explanation has been given. Some claimed that 



22 2 Egypt and its Betrayal 

there was a real conspiracy, others, that the victim possessed 
compromising facts that he might reveal against the Khedive 
and still others publicly stated that Mr. Goschen was morally 
responsible for the deed. That he was pleased to have the ex- 
Minister out of the way of his financial scheme, there is no doubt. 

The next day after the arrest, the English Consul-General, 
Mr. Vivian, in a despatch to his Government speaks of the 
tragedy ''as one of those dramatic incidents peculiar to Eastern 
Hfe." He adds, ''He was the greatest stumbling-block to any 
chance of financial reform or administration and his fall, how- 
ever it was brought about, can only be regarded as a great public 
benefit." The same day, he reported the probable success of 
Messrs. Goschen and Joubert, "which had for some time been 
doubtful in consequence of the hostile attitude of the late 
Minister of Finance." As a matter of fact, the Goschen- Joubert 
proposition was agreed to the next day. 

It is quite true, as I stated at the time in my report to Secre- 
tary Fish, that there were no regrets for the Mufettish. There 
was joy at his removal and people cared little whether it was 
just or in what way it was accomplished. 

In an interview that I had with the Khedive the day after 
the arrest, I found him very much excited. It was the only 
time I ever saw him when he seemed to have lost control of 
himself. He was apparently very angry with the Mufettish. 
He told me how he had raised him up from a common fellah to 
the most important position in Egypt and said that he had 
undertaken to incite a rebellion. He detailed what he claimed 
to be some of the facts which he had learned from the governors 
of the provinces and the heads of the religious organizations. 
Having already some knowledge of the methods of autocratic 
Oriental Governments, I concluded from the temper of the 
Khedive that the ex-Minis ter was already dead, though nothing 
was said indicating that such was the fact. 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 223 

As a sequel to the disposal of the Mufettish, came the con- 
fiscation of his estates. In his wealth, we have a marked illus- 
tration of the wonderful opportunities and privileges of a 
favorite minister of an autocratic ruler. Perhaps we have also 
a case in which the accumulated wealth of such a favorite has 
been the cause of his fall. 

Foucquet, the Finance Minister of Louis XIV, lost the 
favor of his sovereign in consequence of the wealth he had 
amassed and the splendor of his palaces and festive entertain- 
ments. He ended his days in a dungeon after nineteen years 
of imprisonment. 

No one can say to-day whether the wealth of the Egyptian 
Minister was one of the causes of his tragic end. The posi- 
tions of such servants of royalty are always precarious and, the 
greater the wealth, when confiscation is permitted, the greater 
the danger. 

In this case, we have a man from the lowest class in Egypt, 
who commenced life in poverty and squalor, and who never 
had any apparent means of accumulating wealth, except his 
official position. Yet, at the age of fifty-five, after having spent 
immense sums in Oriental extravagance, he left a fortune of 
from $10,000,000 to $15,000,000. He had thirty thousand acres 
of choice Nile lands, three large, magnificently decorated and 
furnished palaces, hundreds of female slaves, large amounts of 
valuable jewelry, securities and other personal property. 

I had an opportunity of passing through his palaces previous 
to the removal of the furniture. They were on adjoining lands. 
As you approached, nothing could be seen from the streets but 
the high walls that surrounded the gardens and buildings. The 
entrances were by large porte-cocheres, which contained lodges 
for eunuchs and guards. Each palace was separated from the 
others by a high wall, so that the view from one to the other 
as well as that of the streets was obstructed. There were no 



2 24 ^SyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

communicating passages, except by a small door through the 
wall, presumably for the convenience of the master. The build- 
ings were large, and contained, I should judge, two hundred 
rooms. The appointments were all princely and excelled in 
Egypt only by the palaces of the Khedive. 

Here lived the Mufettish in luxurious splendor, with his 
wives and female slaves, the latter numbering, according to the 
most conservative statements, not less than three hundred. 
Very few of these ever went outside the garden walls, and all 
were always closely guarded by eunuchs. Among the inmates 
of his harem, there were said to be many of the handsomest 
young Caucasians and Georgians. White slaves of this class 
are very costly, and the favorites are gorgeously dressed and 
adorned with jewels. 

The harem has its well defined aristocracy. The wives and 
favorites are served by slaves, generally colored, who are often 
treated by their mistresses with great cruelty. The worst acts 
of cruelty, of which I heard while in Egypt, were those of women 
towards their slaves. All children born in the harem are legiti- 
mate and have equal rights as heirs. The mother, on the birth 
of a child, is raised to the rank of a wife. 

The slaves of the Mufettish were absorbed by the other 
harems of Cairo — those of the Khedive, Pashas and Beys — 
the Khedive, of course, having the first choice if he desired. 
A large number of them were said to have been sold. If so, the 
sales were privately made and the secret kept. They disap- 
peared, but under what conditions the public never knew, and 
the numerous reports were mere conjectures. 

A few days later, there was a sale at auction of such furniture 
and jewels as had not been otherwise disposed of. The Khedive, 
according to report, pocketed the proceeds of the confiscated 
estates and thus ended a drama that at the time attracted much 
attention in Egypt and Europe. 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 225 

The principal actors arc now dead, — the Khedive, his son 
Tewfik, afterwards Khedive, Prince Hassan and Cherif Pasha. 
There is, however, no authentic evidence that any of these per- 
sons except the Khedive, Ismail Pasha, were responsible in any 
degree for what happened. As Ismail was an Oriental ruler 
in whom were centered all governmental powers, — legislative, 
judicial and executive, — we cannot say, not having full knowl- 
edge of the facts, that his course was criminal, however much 
we may condemn such arbitrary modes of procedure in cases 
of persons accused of crime. 

In judging the acts of people of different nationalities and 
different systems of morals, religion and government, we must 
take into consideration their laws and the criminal procedure 
to which they have always been accustomed. Christian gov- 
ernments do not hesitate, for the benefit of the example, when 
it is thought necessary or when their sovereignty is in question, 
to resort to the most summary executions. Even to establish 
a questionable authority, there have been numerous cases within 
a century of Christian governments sacrificing large numbers of 
people, summarily, in the most cruel manner, and without even 
the form of a drumhead court-martial. 

On the arrival in Egypt, in 1882, of the English attorneys 
who had been generously employed by Mr. Wilford Scawen 
Blunt to defend Arabi Pasha and his associates against a charge 
of treason, Riaz Pasha refused them access to the prisoners. 
This he claimed would be contrary to Egyptian law.^ Neither 
would he allow any communication with them, not even the 
conveying to the prisoners the information that the attorneys 
had arrived in Egypt and were ready to enter upon the prepara- 
tion of their defense. It was only after long negotiations and 
the intercession of noble, high-minded Englishmen that any 

^ He was then Prime Minister and continued to hold that position a long 
time under the English regime. 



2 26 Egypt and its Betrayal 

communication was permitted between the attorneys and their 
clients. 

When the question was raised of their having a fair trial, 
as had been stipulated on their delivery by Sir Garnet, now 
Lord Wolseley, to the Government of the Khedive, Riaz re- 
plied: ''What is the use of a trial, when we all know that they 
are guilty?" Such a proceeding was entirely superfluous ac- 
cording to his ideas of justice. He would have had a secret 
court-martial, without the annoyance of the presence of the 
accused, sitting only long enough to draw up the necessary 
judgments, and a secret execution of the prisoners before the 
dawn of the following morning. 

The only crime of these prisoners consisted in being loyal 
to their own people instead of being wholly subservient to the 
foreign domination which was being forced upon the country. 

The strangest part of this remarkable history is that Riaz 
was sustained by the whole English Jingo Party in Egypt. 
They brought every possible influence to bear to prevent the 
chiefs of the National Party from having the benefit of counsel 
at their trials. The pressure of the Gladstone Ministry, sup- 
ported by the better classes in England, prevailed in the case 
of Arabi and his friends. 

The investigation showed that he was not guilty of the so- 
called massacre of the 11th of June, 1882, nor of the burning 
of Alexandria, nor of treason in any legal sense. As Minister 
of War, he had obeyed the orders both of the Khedive and the 
Sultan in opposing the English, and the Government accounts 
were found to have been kept with the strictest honesty. 

To avoid the scandal a public trial would certainly have 
caused, without losing the benefit of an example of the danger 
of any opposition to the English Government, arrangements 
were made for banishment to the island of Ceylon, instead of 
hanging, and with this both Riaz and Arabi had perforce to 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 227 

be content. In this connection, we might refer to the cruel, 
illegal executions, sometimes of innocent victims, indulged in by 
the populace in our own country, which are more summary and 
often more barbarous than the acts of any Eastern potentate 
These barbarities are tolerated and find numerous apologists 
among us, while we boast of our Christian institutions and our 
advanced civilization. 

There occurred in Egypt in June, 1906, an incident which 
shows the extreme measures sometimes employed to maintain 
the principle of the inviolability of the governing authority. 

A body of English soldiers were on the march from Cairo to 
Alexandria. Five of the officers set out for a small village, four 
or five miles from their camp, where they were certain to find 
pigeon-shooting. A rural Egyptian village consists of a collec- 
tion of sun-dried brick huts placed closely together. On some 
of the rude dwellings cotes are built by the natives in which 
pigeons are reared in large numbers, giving the owners small 
incomes. To some of the older people this is a chief means of 
suppdrt. There are only a few villages where there are pigeons in 
any considerable numbers and naturally one of these was chosen 
by the officers. For the same purpose, and to the displeasure 
of the people, they had visited this village the preceding year. 

Lord Cromer in one of his reports says: ^'The standing in- 
structions to the army of occupation are that no pigeon-shooting 
is to take place without the consent of the local Omdeh.^ " In 
this case such consent was not obtained, as the Omdeh was 
absent. The shooting, however, was not abandoned or even 
delayed. The officers separated into two parties and began to 
shoot the tame pigeons which were flying close to the village. 
Two of the officers chanced to stand near a threshing-floor 
where wheat was being threshed; and presently it was discov- 

1 Village chief. 



22 8 Egypt and its Betrayal 

ered that the wheat was on fire. On hearing the screams of a 
woman and the alarm of fire the natives quickly gathered and 
the fire was extinguished without serious loss. 

As to the origin of the fire no evidence was offered during 
the trial that afterwards took place, except the testimony of 
the wife of the owner of the wheat, a woman twenty years old. 
She gave the following testimony: "I was on the threshing- 
machine 1 and my husband was collecting the threshed corn 
[wheat]. Suddenly a shot hit the threshing-machine and set 
it on fire. Another shot hit me in my leg. I fell and do not 
know who fired the shots." The machine was charred by the 
burning of the wheat. 

There were two physicians who made the official examina- 
tions for the trial. One was an officer, a member of the shooting 
party, and the other a native village physician. According to 
their report, used as evidence on the trial, this woman had 
"about sixty shot wounds," "many of the shot were still in 
the flesh," and "the skin on the parts affected painful and 
swollen." It is important to note that the villagers had no fire- 
arms; these are a luxury not permitted to the natives. 

At the time of the burning of the wheat, or immediately after, 
its owner, the husband of the wounded woman, attempted to 
wrest his gun from the officer who had been shooting near him. 
Others who had come at the alarm of fire came to the aid of the 
native. The gun was discharged, as was later claimed, by acci- 
dent. On the trial it was argued that the woman might have 
been shot at this time; though there was no evidence tending 
to prove that this was the fact. The struggle for the gun con- 
tinued, and according to the testimony certain of the officers 

1 A rude sled drawn by animals and having rollers between the runners 
set with short irons, or with disks, so that the wheat is not only threshed by 
the treading of the animals, but the straw is at the same time cut finely so 
that it can be eaten by camels. See the accompanying illustration. 




tf. 



Zl. 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 229 

who had been shooting on another side of the village hurried 
to the scene of the incident. They then shot two or three times, 
one witness said four times, into the crowd of natives, variously- 
estimated to have numbered from thirty to one hundred. Three 
of these persons were wounded, one of them being as it hap- 
pened the Sheikh-el-Ghaffir ^ and another a ghaffir. The tes- 
timony of both of these persons was taken on the part of 
the prosecution, and no accusation was made against them. 
The Sheikh-el-Ghaffir in his evidence said that 'Hhe shot that 
wounded him came from another Englishman," that is, one of 
those who had come up after the crowd had gathered, and not 
the officer who was struggling to keep possession of his gun. 
He added, ''No aggression against the officers was committed 
until I was injured." 

As none of the officers in their evidence deny this shooting 
or give any explanation concerning it, one must assume that a 
correct version was given by the Sheik. On the part of the 
officers the chief claim was that the wheat or straw could not 
have been set on fire by the shooting. 

Whatever the exact facts may have been, the husband of the 
wounded woman and the natives who had been suddenly 
brought together by her cries and the alarm of fire naturally 
believed from what they saw and heard that the officers had set 
fire to the wheat and wounded the woman. They became ex- 
cited, beside themselves, furious. One of the officers testified 
that the natives who were struggling for the gun ''were in a 
state of excitement and fury." In this not unnatural obsession 
of rage they followed the officers after they had been disarmed 
or had given up their guns, beating them with sticks and throw- 
ing at them sun-dried brick and dried mud. There is no doubt 
they were rough to brutality after the manner of infuriated 
mobs; though apparently nothing happened which might not 

1 Chief of the guards or watchmen. 



230 ^gyp^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

have taken place in any labor riot in the United States. One 
officer had a broken arm and other members of the party were 
badly bruised. 

Two of the officers escaped and hastened to camp for soldiers. 
The abuse of the other three continued. They were taken back 
to the threshing-floor and seated not far from the wounded 
woman. There was no interpreter at hand. The natives pointed 
to the woman and one of them drew his hand across his throat 
in a manner that might have been taken as a direct threat to 
kill the officer. Surrounded by this excited and furious body 
of natives, and powerless to communicate with them, the 
Englishmen were certainly in an awkward and even dangerous 
position. However, there were no further hostile acts. 

It was excessively hot, and one of the two officers who had 
attempted to return to their camp had a sunstroke and died 
twenty-four hours later. As to the cause of death, the court 
found "that a blow had caused a concussion of the brain, and 
though it was not sufficient in itself to cause death it weakened 
him and thereby made him to be quickly affected by sunstroke 
and so contributed to his death." 

Under a Khedivial decree which the English had previously 
obtained providing for the trial of offenses against the army 
of occupation, a special court was organized for the trial of 
fifty-nine natives accused of having taken part in the assault 
upon the officers. This court consisted of three Englishmen 
and two natives. One of the natives was a judge of the native 
court whose official position was dependent upon the will of 
the English authorities. The other native was designated in 
the proceedings as the Acting Minister of Justice. With him, 
however, as one of the English members of the court, was the 
English Acting Judicial Adviser. 

The Khedive has for his adviser the English Consul-General. 
who instructs his Highness as to his duties and thus becomes 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 231 

the absolute ruler of Egypt. The other high native officials 
also have their English advisers whose duties are to instruct 
the natives as to what they shall do and to see that they carry 
out these instructions. Thus, while nominally the principal 
officials are natives, in fact, they have only the powers of sub- 
ordinates subject to removal for the slightest disobedience to 
the commands given them by their English advisers. 

The court thus organized listened for a part of two days to 
the reading of the evidence (proces verbal), which had all been 
previously taken, — for the most part wholly ex parte, without 
the presence of the accused or of any one representing them. 
In fact, some of the parties were not arrested till the testimony 
had been closed. All the evidence taken, that on which the 
conviction was afterwards based, was merely in the nature of 
that taken in the United States before the issuing of a warrant 
of arrest. Orders were issued from time to time for the arrest 
of such persons as were shown to have been present and taken 
part in the affray. 

The prosecuting attorney was then heard. Afterwards, when 
the trial had in fact been ended, counsel was permitted to speak 
in behalf of the prisoners. The English representative (Lord 
Cromer having left Egypt) triumphantly reported to his Gov- 
ernment that "the defense broke down completely, and all 
that their counsel could say on behalf of the prisoners practically 
amounted to an appeal for the mercy of the court"! 

The five members of the court, after "due deliberation," 
rendered a judgment condemning twenty-one persons: four to 
death by hanging; two to penal servitude for life, one of whom 
was the husband of the wounded woman; one to penal servitude 
for fifteen years; six to penal servitude for seven years; three 
to fifty lashes and labor for one year; and five others to fifty 
lashes. 

The judgment was without the right of appeal or approval 



232 Egypt and its Betrayal 

l)y liny higher authority. The sentence of the persons con- 
demned to be hanged and those to be flogged was publicly 
executed the following day at the village of the riot. The 
native "medico-legal expert" certified that the hanging and 
flogging had been ''properly performed." Thus ended the 
judicial tragedy . 

There was no attempt to identify the person who struck the 
deceased officer and no more })roperly admissible evidence 
given against the four persons condemned to death than against 
many others. They were designated with others as ringleaders 
who had excited the riot. The proof to establish this fact was 
hearsay and as follows: The official who took the testimony 
directed a person who was not present and knew nothing per- 
sonally of the incident to ascertain and report what he could 
learn relative to the affair. Among other items of his report, 
which was rendered verbally and not on oath, was the state- 
ment that certain [)ersons were the ringleaders, the authority 
cited being the Omdeh of the village. The Omdeh was also 
absent at the time of the attack upon the officers, but upon 
being asked if he had made these statements, answered in the 
affirmative. To the inquiry as to the source of his informa- 
tion, he said: "I was told this by the inhabitants." The English 
official in his report attempts to justify the admission of this 
and other hearsay evidence, alleging that it was in accordance 
with French procedure. 

As might be expected, the action of the court was loudly 
condemned by all nationalities represented in Egypt, except 
the English. Complaints were made in Europe and a report of 
the whole proceedings was called for, and presented by the 
English Ministry to Parliament. The evidence that was read 
before the court on which the prisoners were convicted and 
such other facts as the Ministry thought politic to make public 
were printed in two Parliamentary papers on Egypt, Nos. 3 and 



Tragedy of Sadik Pasha 233 

4 (1906). The account tliat I have given is taken wholly from 
these official documents. 

However abhorrent this whole procedure may appear from 
information based on the official reports, it would appear much 
more abhorrent should we accept, as the true version of the 
facts, information received from native sources and from Con- 
tinental residents of Egypt. Because of the unrest it produced 
in Egypt the cry was at once raised of Moslem fanaticism, and 
more English troops were demanded. The Egyptians were said 
to be ungrateful for all that had been done for them, and even 
to hate their English benefactors!! 

It is not probable, however, that the Englishmen who were 
responsible for this remarkable procedure intended to do in- 
justice to any one. In its severity and injustice it probably 
has no parallel in the modern judicial annals of any civilized 
Christian country. Yet this was thought to be demanded by 
English interests, and by the necessity of sustaining English 
prestige and authority. In their opinion this terrible exliibition 
of power, this spectacle of hanging and flogging, was necessary 
as an example. The natives must learn the danger of molest- 
ing those whom the Government of his Majesty, the King of 
England, had placed over them, regardless of the right or 
wrong of either party. They viewed the affair wholly from an 
English standpoint. The slave must not return the blow, 
however cruelly and unjustly he may be chastised by his mas- 
ter. If he does, the master may kill him to maintain his au- 
thority, without incurring any penalty of the law. 

On the route between the English camp and the village there 
was found late on the day of the affair the body of a native 
with his skull crushed. No investigation seems to have been 
made as to the manner in which he came to his death. 



2 34 Egypt and its Betrayal 



CHAPTER XX 

REIGN OF THE BONDHOLDERS 

Yielding to the diplomatic pressure instigated by the bond- 
holders, the Khedive consented to the appointment of European 
comptrollers for the different financial departments. Not satis- 
fied with these concessions, the foreigners soon demanded and 
obtained control of the Ministry, leaving his Highness only the 
shadow of power. Important economies were promised in ob- 
taining consent to this last demand. Native officials were 
dismissed and their places filled by highly paid strangers, 
unacquainted with the language of the country, and, in a great 
number of cases, incompetent for any duty except that of 
drawing their salaries. 

The English Consul-General kept his Government well in- 
formed as to all that took place. On the 12th of July, 1877, 
he wrote as to the payment of the coupons then due: 

"The money required, £2,074,975 ($10,000,000), was fully 
paid yesterday. But I fear these results may have been 
achieved at the expense of ruinous sacrifices to the peasantry by 
forced sales of growing crops, and by collecting taxes in advance . 
All this must be wrung in some shape or other from the country 
already crushed by taxation. Meanwhile I fear the European 
administration may be unconsciously sanctioning the utter ruin 
of the peasant creators of the wealth of the country, for which 
I hold that Englishmen are incurring a serious responsibility." 

This and other despatches of similar import did not in the 



Reign of the Bondholders 235 

least lessen the pressure of London and Paris, though they did 
cost the Consul-General Disraeli's displeasure and his ultimate 
removal. 

On the thirtieth of November, 1878, he reported to his Gov- 
ernment as follows: ''The treasury is empty, the troops and the 
Government employees are many months in arrears of pay, and 
among the latter class the greatest distress and misery prevail." 
He should have added that the hundreds of foreign sinecure 
employees were promptly paid, each month, their high salaries. 

In speaking of the situation at the beginning of 1879, an 
EngHsh writer who made no secret of his pride in England's 
good fortune in capturing Egypt, says: 

''The new year opened with no improvement in the Egyptian 
situation. The oppressive fiscal methods of the old personal 
regime were still in full operation; yet the treasury was empty, 
and the unpaid native officials, the army, and the local creditors 
were all suffering and clamoring as of old. Only the legion of 
European functionaries were content, receiving their fat salaries 
punctually in full. Indeed, if there had been no other grounds 
of complaint against the new system, the very number of these 
foreign half-sinecurists, and the fact that they were so paid, 
while native employees, and all ranks of the army were left 
many months in arrears, were enough to account for the popu- 
lar discontent which found freer and louder voice each day." 

In the face of these facts and of the starving thousands in 
Upper Egypt caused by the low Nile, English journals at the 
time (and English writers ever since) attributed the national dis- 
content to the Khedive, claiming it was "all of his fomenting." 

For the year 1877, out of the £9,543,000 of revenue, £7,473,909 
went as interest to the bondholders and nearly £1,000,000 to 
pay England the interest on the Suez Canal shares and the 
Turkish tribute, leaving only a little over £1,000,000 for all the 



236 EgyP^ ^^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

expenses of the Government, including the army and the high- 
paid foreign employees. Substantially the same conditions 
were true of 1S7S. 

It must be remembered that there were no municipalities in 
Egypt, and that all the expenses of the comitry, including those 
of the cities, towns, dikes and canals, schools, etc., were paid, 
if at all, from the Government Treasmy. With the smn re- 
maining for current expenses, about one-fom*th of what was 
absolutely necessary, the Khedive was asked to be responsible 
for the public security and the regular working of the Govern- 
ment and was treated as a criminal because he could not succeed. 

I watched closely the fuiances of Egypt from the time of my 
arrival and know that the Khedive, whatever his previous sins 
may have been, did his utmost, after the beginning of 1S76, to 
alle\'iate the fhiancial situation. There was no building of 
palaces, no extension of railways, nor of telegraph lines, no 
purchase of steamei^, no personal expenses greater than those 
of the petty princes of Em-ope, or greater than the private for- 
tune of the Khedive, before he became Khedive, would have 
permitted. 

It had been persistently claimed, contrary to the assertions 
of the Khedive, that the revenues of Egypt properly appUed 
were amply sufficient to enable the Government to pa}^ seven 
per cent mterest on its indebtedness. The European ]\Iinistry 
on coming into power soon learned that this was not true. They 
immediately sought other resources to enable them to fulfill 
their promises to the bondholders, who had seemed them their 
lucrative positions. If these promises could be kept, bonds that 
had been bought at from fifty to seventy cents on the dollar, 
would be worth their face value. First, they demanded the 
vast estates belonging to the Khedive and liis family. 

Ismail Pasha, before he became Khedive, was the wealthiest 
and most thrifty prince in the Orient. He had inherited a large 



Reign of the Bondholders 237 

property, consisting of buildings in Alexandria and Cairo, and 
of lands, principally plantations of sugar-cane in Upper Egypt. 
These estates were well managed and productive. With his 
vice-regal throne he also had large inheritances. He undoubt- 
edly had the mania of acquisition, and, on his accession to the 
absolute sovereignty of Egypt, his landed estates increased very 
rapidly. Within ten years, they amounted to nine hundred 
and fifty thousand acres. A part of this was acquired by pur- 
chase, but much the larger portion was reclaimed from the 
desert by the construction of irrigating canaLs, leveling the 
ground, and otherwise preparing it for cultivation. 

In the acquisition of these additional lands, and the putting 
of them in a state of cultivation, the Khedive incurred an in- 
debtedness, in excess of the net profits of all his estates, of 
S43,000,000. Some idea can be formed of the value of these 
estates from the fact that they constituted nearly one-fifth of 
the lands of Egypt, and produced annually more than a million 
of acres of crops. Upon this property there were fifteen sugar 
factories, well constructed and in excellent condition, contain- 
ing fifty mills for crushing the cane; two old factories not in 
use, and the machinery and the other materials for the con- 
struction of three more. There were also two hundred and fifty 
miles of railroads with forty locomotives and a proportionate 
amount of other rolling-stock, all constructed and principally 
used to transport cane to these factories. The presence of these 
railroads did not obviate the necessity of employing large num- 
bers of camels. I have seen lines of cameLs miles in length 
conveying cane to the railway stations. 

A large part of these estates had been previously conveyed by 
the Khedive to members of his family. On the demand of the 
European Ministry they were all conveyed, with the personal 
property pertaining to them, to the State to aid in relieving it 
from financial embarrassment. Some of these lands were sub- 



2 3^ ^SyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

ject to a mortgage of forty- three million dollars, the indebt- 
edness previously mentioned, but over four hundred and fifty 
thousand acres were unencumbered. Thus was terminated the 
ownership of what was, when all owned by the Khedive, the 
most valuable individual landed estate in the world. The gift 
also included large amounts of property in Cairo and Alex- 
andria. 

Among the early official enterprises of the English member 
of the Ministry was a trip to London to obtain a loan, to be 
secured by a mortgage on the unencumbered part of these lands. 
He had an interview with the Rothschilds. This was their 
opportunity. Why should they not profit by it? Egypt wanted 
money. The security was ample and the interest high. The 
only question was how much blood they should take. As to 
the Minister, he was ready to consent to any terms they might 
think expedient to name. A contract was concluded, therefore, 
by which this banking house undertook to market, at seventy- 
three per cent, £8,500,000 of bonds to be secured by a mort- 
gage on the unencumbered estates conveyed by the Khedivial 
family to the Egyptian Government. These estates were to be 
put under the management of English and French comptrollers, 
and in case the revenues were at any time insufficient to pay 
the interest and principal of the loan, as they should become 
due, the deficit was to be paid by the Egyptian Government. 
These bonds were worth, at the time of their issue, their face 
value, and would have been gladly taken at that figure by the 
creditors. That it might appear that they were acting as 
brokers, the Rothschilds stipulated that they should receive 
for their services three per cent of the proceeds of the sale, 
which amounted to the modest sum of $900,000. The bonds 
were nominally put upon the market, but were all immedi- 
ately taken by the Rothschilds and such friends as they chose 
to favor. By this transaction, Egypt lost $12,000,000. This 



Reign of the Bondholders 239 

sum, to say the least, was needlessly thrown into the coffers 
of the rich bankers of London. The bonds of this loan are 
known as the "Domanial," those of the domain. The interest 
has been promptly paid, and from the sale of lands the larger 
part of the principal. The bonds remaining, if any, can be sold 
at a premium. 

Notwithstanding the promises made to the Khedive, when he 
gave these vast estates to the Government, that the floating 
debts should be paid, and that he should thus be relieved of 
further annoyance from the financial situation, these debts 
remained unpaid. The proceeds of the loan, as fast as received, 
were applied by the Franco-English control to the payment of 
the high interest on the bonds. It was the creditors holding 
these bonds that the European Ministry specially represented. 

The discontent of the people increased and the opposition 
became daily stronger against the inundation of the country 
by foreigners, who had already obtained possession of the most 
important official positions and were fast filfing the minor ones. 

The soldiers of the Egyptian army were discharged and the 
officers, twenty-five hundred in number, placed on a detached 
list. The pay of both soldiers and officers, during nearly the 
entire period of the bondholders' control of the finances, was 
one to two years in arrears. The officers had been educated for 
the military service and knew no other way of obtaining a sub- 
sistence. They and their famiUes were in a deplorable state 
of destitution. The people became intensely excited. Not- 
withstanding all that the Khedive and his family had given 
to the Government, the national debt continued rapidly in- 
creasing. There were disturbances in Upper Egypt and in- 
cipient rebellion in Cairo, all arising from the sufferings of the 
people caused by the oppressive taxation insisted upon by the 
European Ministry, and the taking of nearly all the proceeds 
to Paris and London to pay six and seven per cent interest on 



240 Egypt and its Betrayal 

what was claimed to be Egypt's indebtedness. The Khedive 
was held responsible for the good government of the country 
and the peaceable conduct of its inhabitants without the least 
means being allowed him with which to alleviate their sufferings. 

Thus commenced, either with premeditated design on the part 
of the Franco-English Ministry, or through their administrative 
inability and excessive zeal in the interest of the London and 
Paris bankers, the political disturbances which culminated three 
years later in the forcible opposition of an oppressed people un- 
der the lead of Arabi Pasha. This situation was foreshadowed 
by the Khedive in a statement made to the writer in the presence 
of two of his colleagues at the time of the first civil disturbances. 
He said; "I can govern the people without a soldier, but a 
Ministry of foreigners or of a different religion can only govern 
them with military force." The experiment of thus governing 
has not been repeated since the first disastrous failure. 

There was no ameUoration in the governmental conditions. 
With every change of the Ministry, the two European Govern- 
ments assumed more powers, until the only duty of the Khedive 
was to sign such decrees as might be prepared by the European 
Ministers. According to their pretensions, he was wholly sub- 
ject in the affairs of the Government to their dictation. This 
too, in spite of the fact that they had not had legislative, exec- 
utive or governmental experience and lacked the ability that 
their positions required. It would have been more dignified 
for the Khedive to have revolted in the first instance, as the 
Sultan did when the Powers asked him to establish a European 
control at Constantinople. His answer was laconic, but it left 
no doubt as to his Majesty's meaning. He replied, "I may be 
the last of the Khalifs, but I will never consent to become a 
second Khedive." 

The Egyptian policy of England and France was then dictated 
by the bondholders. An early, positive and firm refusal to per- 



Reign of the Bondholders 241 

mit them to interfere in the internal affairs of the country, 
instead of trying to please them with continual concessions, 
would have saved the Khedive his throne. Each new con- 
cession only increased their demands, until he virtually abdi- 
cated his sovereignty. It must have been known at London 
that the Government could not continue under the conditions 
imposed. It is not probable that Disraeli intended that it 
should. He was already waiting and watching for an oppor- 
tunity to rid himself of the French alliance, which the English 
hated from the beginning, and into which they had entered to 
prevent the French from obtaining control of Egypt. 

Both the French and English Consuls-General opposed the 
action of the European Ministry, but the bondholders in Paris 
succeeded in having the French Consul-General promptly re- 
called. The English bondholders were not immediately suc- 
cessful in getting rid of the English Consul-General, but the 
political designs of Disraeli and the financial interests of the 
Rothschilds and other bankers demanded the sacrifice. Even 
a future member of the House of Lords was not permitted to 
stand in their way, and a few weeks later the English Consul- 
General, Mr. Vivian, was also recalled. He was an only son of 
Lord Vivian, who was of a very old and honorable family, but, 
in politics, a member of the Liberal Party. 

Mr. Vivian afterwards represented his Government in several 
countries, became Lord Vivian on the death of his father and 
died while Ambassador at Rome. The English member of the 
Ministry accomplished his purpose, but his administration was 
such an evident failure that the time of his own departure was 
not long delayed. A wise administrator, like the present Eng- 
lish ruler. Lord Cromer,^ might have retained his position 

^ Since the writing of the above, Lord Cromer has resigned and has been 
succeeded by Sir Eldon Gorst as British Agent and Consul-General at Cairo, 
who thereby becomes the real ruler of Egypt. 



242 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

indefinitely and been highly beneficial to Egypt. The Govern- 
ment had, however, been placed by the European control in 
the worst possible condition, and this furnished a plausible 
excuse for the drastic measures soon to be taken. 

The Egyptian question in the early days of the Khedive's 
embarrassment, for those not in the secrets of diplomacy, was 
wholly one of finance, — how bonds that had been bought for 
fifty cents on a dollar by bankers and syndicates in Paris and 
London might be made worth their face value. Many of these 
bonds had been placed in the hands of those in power, or in 
positions of great political influence, where, to use an American 
phrase, "they would do the most good." Thus it turned out, 
especially in Paris, that relatives of cabinet officials and mem- 
bers of Parliament were large holders of Egyptian securities. 
These officials were ready to aid in procuring any measures that 
would be likely to increase the value of their holdings. 

At the time of England's first official interference in Egyptian 
finance, there were nearly a score of Governments, in different 
parts of the world, that had failed to meet their liabilities, and 
who were owing English creditors many hundred millions of 
dollars. Yet the English Government had never officially aided 
one of these creditors in collecting their claims. On the con- 
trary, it had always given them "the cold shoulder." Not only 
did it refuse them aid, but plainly informed them that if they 
wished to loan their money where it would be secure, they must 
loan it at home, and be content with the English rate of in- 
terest. If they loaned it abroad, taking foreign securities, they 
did it at their own risk and must not expect any aid from their 
Government in enforcing the payment of their demands, just 
or unjust. This had been the settled policy of England. It did 
not undertake to resolve itself into a sheriff's posse comitatus 
for the purpose of enforcing the collection, in foreign countries, 
of the securities purchased by its adventurous citizens. Eng- 



Reign of the Bondholders 243 

land had never given official aid in the collection of claims 
arising from voluntary contracts, such as the loaning of money, 
or the buying of foreign bonds. Such aid could only be given 
in the collection of claims arising from the wrongful acts of 
Governments or their citizens, or their wrongful neglect. 

It is quite evident from these facts, as well as from the sequel 
to this Egyptian drama, in which Disraeli, for a time, became 
the principal promoter, that he had, after the purchase of the 
canal shares, other than purely financial objects in view. This 
was the more apparent from the fact that the demands sought 
to be collected were notoriously usurious, to such an extent, 
that not nearly one-half of the amounts claimed was justly 
owing. It is not probable that, in the whole enormous list of 
foreign bonds held by Englishmen against defaulting states, 
any were more unjust than the Egyptian. While France and 
England were apparently harmoniously engaged in forcing the 
payment of interest on Egyptian bonds, and the Shylocks of 
Paris and London were pocketing the plunder, these two very 
Christian powers were watching each other with most intense 
jealousy, each striving for preponderance of power and each 
afraid the other would obtain some poUtical advantage. Thus 
the strife continued until the final acts of the drama, the bom- 
bardment of Alexandria, Tell el-Kebir, and the permanent 
military occupation of Egypt by the English. 

The burdens of the fellahin under the last years of the Khedive 
had been excessive. He had been constantly threatened with 
the loss of his crown unless the excessive interest was paid, and 
had made the most desperate efforts to accomplish the im- 
possible. The taxes under the European Ministry were not 
diminished, but rather increased. I have written a detailed 
account of the acts of the bondholders' reign, but space will 
not permit its insertion in this narrative. 

Cupidity grows on being well fed. After the acquisition of 



2 44 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

the Khedivial estates, worth at least seventy-five million dol- 
lars above the encumbrances, search was made for other means 
of increasing the amounts that could be drawn from Egypt. 
I will only mention two or three of the principal of these sources 
of increased revenue. One is what was known as the Mouka- 
balah. Under a decree of the Khedive all persons who should 
"pay into the treasury a sum equal to six years of their land 
tax were to be relieved in perpetuity from one-half of their 
taxes, such taxes to be computed on the basis of the land-tax 
then paid, the taxes thus lessened not to be increased in the 
future, in any manner nor for any reason." Over seventy-eight 
million dollars had been paid into the treasury under this de- 
cree, many mortgaging their lands to raise the money. 

The European Ministry proposed the abolition of the Mouka- 
balah and the repudiation of all claims made under it. This 
would, as claimed, increase the annual revenue five and a half 
million dollars, sufficient to pay the bondholders an additional 
one per cent per annum. 

Another source of revenue was to be derived from increasing 
the tax on that class of lands known as the Ouchouri. The 
average annual land-tax on all the cultivated lands of Egypt 
was already five and a half dollars per acre. On the Ouchouri 
lands, lower taxes were paid than on the other lands in Egypt. 
They had been reclaimed from the desert, during the last seventy- 
five years, at great expense in leveling and constructing canals. 
At first, it was agreed by the Government that they should be 
free of taxation. They were afterwards taxed, according to the 
old Moslem law, a tenth of their gross income, giving them their 
name, Ouchouri, one-tenth. The taxes were later increased 
under various pretexts till they were about half of those of the 
other lands known as the Karadja, or conquered lands. In 
consequence of this immunity from a part of the taxes, this land 
sold for about double the other lands. 



Reign of the Bondholders 245 

The Ministry proposed, under a pretense of equalizing taxa- 
tion, to raise the tax on these lands, placing them on the same 
basis as the Karadja. This was to add immediately to the 
annual revenues seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars, the 
amount to be largely increased as soon as appraisals of their 
products could be made. 

There was also an indebtedness of the Government of over 
nine milHon dollars which had been paid into the treasury under 
agreements for perpetual annuities. This, it was proposed to 
wholly repudiate. These reforms, as they were called, with 
others equally just, were all embodied in a decree which the 
Khedive was asked to sign. When objections were made by the 
people and the Khedive, he was accused by the reformers of 
fomenting discontent. After the removal of the Khedive, these 
measures, slightly modified, were imposed upon Egypt. A small 
interest was made payable on the money advanced under the 
decree known as the Moukabalah. 

Under these conditions, the Khedive determined to make 
one supreme effort to save his sovereignty and rid his people of 
the foreign control. The Consuls-General were invited to as- 
semble at the Khedive's palace to receive from his Highness an 
important communication. All of the Great Powers of Europe, 
the United States, Spain, Holland and Denmark were repre- 
sented. 

We were received by the Khedive in the presence of Cherif 
Pasha, a committee of the Chamber of Notables, and certain 
Ulemas. His Highness appeared at first considerably agitated, 
but proceeded to say, that it was impossible for the Govern- 
ment of the country to continue under the existing conditions, 
that a financial plan had been prepared by the European Minis- 
ters that destroyed acquired rights and annulled laws that were 
regarded as sacred; that the plan would be injurious to the 
country, and unjust to a large number of its inhabitants; and 



246 Egypt and its Betrayal 

that so strong an opposition had been created among the people 
that it was necessary for him to yield to their wishes and form 
a new Ministry. 

Chcrif Pasha explained the situation more at length. He 
stated that the National movement had originated in the Cham- 
ber of Notables which had been in session all winter, and was 
finally dismissed without any realization of what they consid- 
ered their just demands, and that the country could no longer 
support the present administration. The next morning a new 
cabinet was formed, with Cherif Pasha at its head, from which 
the European Ministers were left out. 



Dethronement of Ismail Pasha 247 



CHAPTER XXI 

DETHRONEMENT OF ISMAIL PASHA 

The Anglo-French bondholders' reign had been suddenly 
suspended, never to be resumed in the anomalous form in which 
it had been commenced. It might be characterized as the 
English reign, for, while it had nominally been Anglo-French, 
the English influence had latterly prevailed to such an extent 
that the French influence was scarcely felt. This preponderance 
was so marked that some of the French residents were quite as 
much rejoiced as the natives at what they termed the Khedive's 
couj) (Tetat. 

The whole movement was popular, and its popularity arose 
largely from the utter failure of the attempt at governing (in 
the interest of foreign creditors) by an irresponsible Ministry 
which had httle knowledge of the country and none of the 
language, customs, laws and necessities of its people. The 
foreign Powers were fully aware of this failure and of the political 
mistakes for which they were responsible. This, they could not 
be expected to admit. European Powers claim infallibility for 
all their acts in the Oriental non-Christian countries and, how- 
ever great their mistakes, or those of their agents, they always 
insist that they were in the right. 

There was at that time scarcely a precedent in history for 
their interference in the affairs of Egypt under the pretense of 
securing the payment to their citizens of claims arising from 
money that had been loaned. Supposing that in the case of any 



248 Egypt and its Betrayal 

one of the many refusals of our individual Southern states to 
pay their indebtedness the others had attempted a forced col- 
lection, what would have been the result? 

In the case of Egypt it was not repudiation that was in- 
volved, but a mere question as to the rate of interest. Not- 
withstanding the low price at which the Egyptian bonds had 
been sold, twice as high a rate of interest was claimed on them 
as was paid by the English Government. This amount was 
more than Egypt could pay; and the source of all the trouble, 
was the attempt to compel the Khedive to do what was im- 
possible, even after the despoiling of the Khedivial family and 
the people. 

At the very time of the making of the exorbitant demands I 
have mentioned, the thousands who had died of starvation or 
from the result of insufficient food in Upper Egypt had scarcely 
been buried. These deaths were the direct consequence of the 
exaction of high interest. 

An English gentleman [one of the commissioners who went 
up the Nile about the month of February of this year (1879) 
to carry provisions to the people and to ascertain their con- 
dition] reported that the number who had died of starvation 
and as a result of the want of sufficient food was not less than 
ten thousand, and that many more would be added to this 
number in consequence of diseases contracted by their priva- 
tions and sufferings. He added that all this was the direct 
result of poverty arising from over-taxation. The scenes wit- 
nessed by the first travelers who ascended the Nile that winter 
were appalling. 

For this famine and all its ghastly work, the English and 
French Governments were directly responsible, and this after 
having been previously informed of the conditions of the country 
and the approaching want of food supplies. The famine oc- 
curred in Upper Egypt, the nearest section of the stricken 



Dethronement of Ismail Pasha 249 

region being three hundred and fifty miles above Cairo. They 
were the most densely populated rural districts in the country. 
Their extreme northern portions had a population of from one 
hundred to one hundred and seventeen persons for each one 
hundred acres of land, and the remainder a population of one 
hundred and seventy-nine persons to each one hundred acres. 

In April, 1878^ the question of the payment of the May 
coupons on the bonded indebtedness was under consideration. 
It was well known that large portions of these districts were 
as dry as the desert, and that no crops had been produced upon 
them in consequence of the unprecedentedly low Nile of the 
previous year. Wheat was then one of the principal products 
of this part of Egypt. It is one of the winter crops and is gen- 
erally produced by the natural overflow of the river. 

The famine did not occur till about the beginning of the year 
1879, though the low Nile was in 1877. It was so low in the 
summer and fall of that year that no crops were produced the 
next winter in large portions of Upper Egypt. Where there 
were crops, they were sold to pay taxes and exported. The 
earliest crop following the rise of the Nile in the summer of 
1878 was a kind of bean that was not sufficiently advanced 
until about the month of February, 1879, to give any relief. 
It was during a few weeks previous to this time that the famine 
occurred. Those who actually died of starvation were mostly 
old or feeble people and women and children. It was a poverty 
famine like all others of the present day. With modern facilities 
of communication and transportation, there is always an abund- 
ance of food that can be obtained by those having the means 
necessary for its purchase. 

There was not sufficient money in the treasury to pay the 
May coupons of 1878, that I have mentioned, the deficiency 
being about $6,000,000. The Khedive said these coupons could 
not be paid in full. The French Consul-General, acting under 



250 Egypt and its Betrayal 

instructions from his Government, and seconded by the English 
Consul-General, also acting under instructions, but against his 
personal judgment and wishes, demanded their payment. The 
matter had been well considered. The facts were notorious, and 
had been reported to these Governments. The Khedive even 
begged the Consuls-General not to insist, calling renewed at- 
tention to the inability of the people to pay their taxes and the 
destitution that would necessarily result from such a drain upon 
their resources. The answer of the French Consul-General was, 
"You must pay." 

The English Consul-General reported to his Government, 
that, as the English and French Governments required that 
the coupons should be paid, the Khedive said he would do all 
that lay in his power to meet them, at whatever cost to the 
country; but that the responsibility for the consequences would 
not rest with him. The fiat went forth to raise the money. The 
tax collectors used extraordinary methods, but, after the last 
piaster that could be forced from the poor fellahin had been ob- 
tained, there was still a deficiency of over $2,000,000. This was 
raised by the sale by the Government of the taxpayers' un- 
harvested wheat, then still green in the fields, and by pledging 
the personal property of the Princes, the sons of the Khedive. 

The coupons were paid the day that they became due, and 
the wheat was afterwards exported to Europe to reimburse 
the money advanced. A score of men at Paris, who received 
early private information of the effect of the French Consul- 
General's declaration to the Khedive, made fortunes by the 
rise of Egyptian bonds. The result for Egypt was the famine 
of the following winter. Not enough was reahzed from the sale 
of the wheat to pay the deficit. After various payments, a 
judgment was finally taken against the Princes for the balance, 
about $120,000. 

A little before this, the expense of maintaining an army in 



Dethronement of Ismail Pasha 251 

Turkey had been added to the burdens of the country. The 
Khedive was required to send a body of troops to take part 
against Russia in the Turco-Russian war. His Highness hesi- 
tated a long time, even after the troops were ready to embark, 
and only sent them forward under the diplomatic pressure of 
England. Monsieur de Lex, the Russian Consul-General in 
Egypt, who at the time gave the writer full information as to 
the negotiations, tried in vain to induce the Khedive to with- 
hold them. 

In the end, the Khedive did not dare to disobey the demands 
of the Sultan, supported by England. About thirty thousand 
troops, including those that had been previously sent to aid 
against Servia, were clothed, equipped, sent across the Medi- 
terranean and maintained in Turkey about a year. They came 
back to Egypt just at the time of the demand of the payment 
of the May coupons of 1878. 

Notwithstanding all the burdens imposed upon the country, 
and the mistakes, if we forbear using harsher terms, of the 
bondholders' reign, there was no abandonment of aggressive 
projects. The French took the lead in a new movement, namely 
the dethroning of the Khedive. The old enmity caused by the 
sale of the canal shares to England had latterly been much 
increased by the constantly augmenting preponderance of Eng- 
lish influence in the Orient. 

This hostility being thus aroused, nothing less than the blood 
of the Khedive could satisfy a Frenchman. ^' Une revanche 4cla- 
tante " was what they publicly demanded at Paris, and what, 
in their hearts, they had desired from the moment of this sale. 
They attained their object, but sacrificed thereby all the political 
influence they had acquired in Egypt by nearly a century's 
strife. The strong head of the Government being removed, 
conditions inevitably and quickly followed that made the road 
easy to English supremacy. 



252 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

There is this radical difference between the character of the 
French and English. The former will sacrifice the future for 
the gratification of a present desire. The latter weigh carefully 
all the facts and, before acting, determine what course will be 
in the end most to their advantage. They can wait and wait, 
until the opportune moment arrives. 

The acquisition of Cyprus, after the Berlin Congress, and the 
evident ^^ entente amicale" between England and the Sultan 
undoubtedly gave to the English, in the mind of the Khedive, 
a position of power much more to be feared than that of the 
French. The English were also more practical and knew better 
how to adapt themselves to the conditions of the country. 
This, with the more effective aid of their Government, enabled 
them to secure a large portion of the most lucrative positions 
in Egypt and to flood the country with English employees. 

The workings of the new Ministry were wholly satisfactory 
and popular with all classes. No one could find any fault with 
the Khedive for the manner in w^hich he conducted the Gov- 
ernment, nor even claim that he was not doing the best that 
could be done under the circumstances. France, however, under 
the influence of the bondholders, continued against him, with 
increased asperity, the newspaper war that she had unjustly 
waged for three years. When England hesitated, and seemed 
ready to abandon her, she sounded the Cabinets of all the lead- 
ing Powers of Europe, asking their moral support. 

At the time of the Berlin Congress of 1878, organized to settle 
the questions growing out of the Turco-Russian war, England 
had need of the influence of France. This she obtained by pro- 
curing the assent of the Powers to the proposition that Egyptian 
matters should not be discussed and by such promises as led 
France to believe that her policy in regard to Egypt was to be 
adopted. It was under the pressure of the questions pending 
in Berlin that England, against the advice of her Consul-General 



Dethronement of Ismail Pasha 253 

and other representative Englishmen in Egypt, aided in en- 
forcing the full payment of the May coupons of that year. 

But conditions had changed. England no longer had need 
of France. The preponderance of her influence in Egypt seemed 
assured. Notwithstanding all that had taken place, the Khedive 
showed a decided preference for the English. The party of 
English in Egypt, which was against the Anglo-French Minis- 
try and which included the Consul-General, was stronger than 
that Ministry's partisans. Moreover, England disliked to em- 
bark in this new enterprise in partnership with France. Their 
alleged cordiality was only an outside appearance. High Eng- 
lish officials often stated to me that their Government had 
unwisely allowed itself to be drawn into a disagreeable and 
complicated alliance. Their ideas of what ought to be done 
were wholly different from those of the French. They could 
agree neither upon a general poUcy, nor upon its details. Their 
jealousies were strong, each thinking that the other had some 
covert political designs in every movement made. That each 
did in most cases have such designs was undoubtedly true. 

The financial question became one of secondary importance. 
This fact made their working together in harmony still more 
difficult. France thought that she, by virtue of the conquests 
of the first Napoleon, had in Egypt prior acquired rights of the 
fruits of which she had been deprived by the English. England 
was there, if not at that time with the intention of remaining, 
at least with the design of preventing France from obtaining 
any permanent foothold. The motive of the present movement 
on the part of the French was also to a large degree hatred of 
the Khedive. England, who really had no cause of complaint, 
remained undecided. She was considering the final results. 
France was acting from impulse. England knew from ex- 
perience that the dethroning of a strong, capable prince, and 
the setting up in his place of a young, inexperienced man, meant 



2 54 ■'^SyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

the assumption of the Government. Such a responsibility she 
would not hesitate to take upon herself; but how could this 
dual government, this partnership \sith France in the governing 
business, be managed? 

By reason of these considerations and the satisfactory work- 
ing of the Government in Egypt, the balance seemed turning 
in favor of the Khedive, when, suddenly, a new element en- 
tered into the contest from a wholly unexpected source. It 
was nothing less than an apparent alliance on the pending 
Egj'ptian question between Prince Bismarck and France. Al- 
though nothing at the time could be more surprising, it was 
not difficult for one who had watched and been acquainted with 
diplomatic affairs at Cairo for the preceding two years to com- 
prehend some of the causes that had led to this imexpected 
event. 

Germany had heretofore played a very modest role in the 
affairs of the Orient, having, in comparison with England and 
France, very Uttle influence. She was, however, interested in 
the floating debt of Egypt to the amount of S750,000. Austria 
was in a similar situation. 

The Consuls-General of these countries complained that 
while the Khedive heeded the demands of the Consuls-General 
of England and France, he paid no attention to theirs. They 
frequently said that there were only two Consuls-General in 
EgA-pt, those of England and France, and that the others might 
as well go home. Bismarck was offended at this secondary 
position of Germany and saw his opportunity to make his in- 
fluence felt and to obtain a position in Eg^-pt more in accord- 
ance with the dignity of the new empire he had lately founded. 
The facts were that all the resources of the countrv, including 
the estates of the Khedi^ial family, were in the hands of the 
European comptrollers, and were applied by them to the pay- 
ment of the interest on the bonded indebtedness. The European 



Dethronement of Ismail Pasha 255 

Ministry had not kept the promise it made to the Khedive, at 
the time he turned over his private estates, to pay the floating 
debt. This debt was constantly increasing, and the Khedive 
could do nothing to relieve this embarrassing situation so long 
as the bondholders were permitted to absorb all the revenues. 

WTiether the attitude of Germany had any influence upon 
England we do not know. However that may be, as soon as 
she was informed of the policy of the Kaiser's Government, she 
consented to the French scheme of deposing the Khedive. 

Thus, from her avowed and most dreaded enemy, France 
obtained what was then considered valuable aid in an under- 
taking to which she attached the greatest importance, and for 
the accomplishment of which she had persistently labored with 
all her force. Deservedly, this success was not only the cause 
of her loss of power in Egypt, but it led to an estrangement be- 
tween her and England which lasted through two decades. 
Once England decided to act, the dethronement of the Khedive 
was easy to accomphsh. The only important question was the 
manner in which it should be done. 

About the middle of June, the English representative, Mr. 
Vivian, orally, and as was then claimed, unofficially, advised 
the Khedive to abdicate and immediately afterwards left Egypt 
not to return. Soon afterwards. Monsieur Tricou, a newly 
arrived French Consul-General, who seemed to have been sent 
for the special work in hand, gave in his discourteous manner 
the same advice. 

Monsieur Tricou had previously represented France in Egypt 
and had been recalled at the instance of the Khedive. His 
return at this time was a direct insult to his Highness and plainly 
showed the animus of those having control of the French Gov- 
ernment. 

The day following the verbal communication, Monsieur 
Tricou and Mr. Lascelles, the English charge d'affaires, read to 



256 Egypt and its Betrayal 

his Highness a joint official note of the same import. During 
the day and previous to the presentation of the note, I had an 
interview with the Khedive at his palace. He appeared de- 
jected, and there was an absence of the vivacity that generally 
characterized his interviews, even at the time of his most serious 
troubles. He talked freely of the situation, but expressed no 
opinion as to its probable outcome. He was already advised 
of the official note that was to be presented asking him to abdi- 
cate, but he did not then expect its presentation till the next 
day. In a conversation the same day with Cherif Pasha I found 
him full of hope as to the final result. 

The Khedive was given forty-eight hours in which to answer 
the demands of the Powers. When the Consuls-General called, 
at the expiration of this time, he informed them that he had 
telegraphed to Constantinople for instructions from the Sultan, 
that he had not yet received a reply and that, when it came, he 
would have to trouble them to come to receive his answer. 
He said he had received his authority from the Sultan and could 
not relieve himself of the responsibilities of the Government 
without his Majesty's orders. The French Consul-General was 
much irritated at the unexpected response, and, in his usual 
manner, said, ''How long has your Highness been the humble 
servant of the Porte?" "Since my birth. Monsieur," was the 
quick reply of the Khedive. 

The Powers were very anxious to have the Khedive abdicate 
voluntarily in order to avoid contracting any obligations to 
the Sultan. The French Consul-General continued to urge the 
abdication, and, the conversation becoming animated, he ac- 
cused the Khedive of frequently disobeying the Sultan. ''I 
defy you to name an instance" retorted the Khedive. Monsieur 
Tricou being unable to answer, Mr. Lascelles came to his rescue 
by politely asking the Khedive if it would not be better in this 
instance, to act on his own responsibility? To this, the Khedive 



Dethronement of Ismail Pasha 257 

replied in the most courteous manner, '' My dear sir, as the first 
use you desire me to make of my independence of the Sultan is 
to relinquish the authority he has given me, I do not see what 
I am to gain," 

All possible pressure was employed to obtain the abdication 
of the Khedive without waiting for the decision of the Sultan. 
Promises were made of a civil list, certain private property and 
the accession of his son Mehemet Tewfik, in case of his ac- 
quiescence, and threats of being succeeded by Halim Pasha 
and sent away without anything, in case he did not ac- 
quiesce. 

Afterwards, the French and German Consuls-General went 
to the palace and had the Khedive called at three o'clock in 
the morning, thereby causing great terror of assassination in 
the harem. They informed him that they had come to give him 
the last opportunity of abdicating in favor of his son; that, in 
a few hours, Halim would be appointed Khedive, and it would 
then be too late. The Khedive coolly said: " There will be plenty 
of time to abdicate, I will see you to-morrow. Good night. 
Gentlemen," and went back to his rooms. 

Prince Halim was the red flag that was for years flaunted by 
the French in the face of the Khedive whenever he refused to 
accede to their demands. When Napoleon III was the all- 
powerful monarch in Europe, the Khedive trembled at the sim- 
ple announcement of a visit from the French Consul-General. 
^'What does he want now?" the Khedive would say, or ^'He 
has come to insist on the demand he made yesterday." 

Halim was the uncle of the Khedive and, on the latter's 
death or abdication, would have been, according to Moham- 
medan law, entitled to the succession, being the oldest male 
descendant of Mohammed Ali. In 1866, the Khedive had pro- 
cured a firman from the Sultan, Abdul Aziz, changing the order 
of succession, so that the Viceroyalty should descend from 



258 Egypt and its Betrayal 

father to son instead of going to the oldest male member of the 
reigning family. 

A large party of influential Moslems, composed mostly of 
people living in Constantinople, were opposed to this change. 
Halim resided in that city and, on the accession of the new 
Sultan, Abdul Hamid, there were constant intrigues against the 
Khedive and attempts to restore the old order of succession. To 
counteract this influence, he was obliged to send large sums of 
money to Constantinople, in addition to the annual tribute, 
which had been increased to three million four hundred thou- 
sand dollars on account of various concessions, among which 
was the title of Khedive, a dignity not enjoyed by his prede- 
cessors. 

These conditions account for his dread of having the influence 
of any powerful European Government thrown into the balance 
against him. They also account for the anxiety of the repre- 
sentatives of the Powers to have the Khedive abdicate in favor 
of his son. They feared that Halim might be too independent 
or too much under the influence of the Sultan, and that the 
Sultan might attempt, if they relied upon his action, to profit 
by the occasion to regain prerogatives that had been bartered 
away by his predecessor. This last was precisely what did 
happen. It was only the positive and firm refusal of England 
and France to yield that prevented the success of the Sultan's 
attempt and secured to Tewfik Pasha the continuance of the 
privileges that had been granted to his father, so far as they 
were thought essential. This was only securing privileges for 
themselves, however, as Tewfik, whom they were setting on the 
throne, had no voice in the negotiations, and was afterwards 
compelled to do their bidding. 

At an early stage in the negotiations, before the question of 
abdication had been broached to Ismail, the Sultan had been 
consulted. His Majesty had expressed a willingness to make 



Dethronement of Ismail Pasha 259 

Halim Khedive, but he consented to the appointment of Tewfik 
only under the strong pressure of England. 

The day following the midnight visit of the French and 
German Consuls-General to the Khedive, attempts to procure 
his voluntary abdication were continued, based on information 
claimed to have been received from Constantinople, that the 
Sultan was about to designate Halim as his successor. Offers 
were made of written guarantees of what had been promised, 
but the Khedive said firmly that he would only resign his power 
into the hands of the Sultan, or by his order. 

During these scenes at Cairo the Ambassadors of England 
and France were busy at Constantinople. 

In 1831, Mohammed Ali commenced a war against the Porte 
to secure his independence. In the following year, his armies, 
under the command of his adopted son, Ibrahim, the father of 
Ismail, conquered Syria. The intervention of the Powers pre- 
vented him from besieging Constantinople, but, under the 
treaty which followed, he retained the government of Syria. In 
1839, England induced the Sultan to renew hostilities. The 
Sultan suffered a decisive defeat, but England, assisted by 
Austria, came to his support and arrested the victorious march 
of the forces of Mohammed Ali. They also compelled him to 
give up Syria, which had welcomed his coming and been satis- 
fied with his reign and they restored this unhappy country, 
against its will, to the rule of the Turk. They also compelled 
him to acknowledge the suzerainty of the Sultan and pay to 
him an annual tribute amounting to one and a half million 
dollars. This action of England in replacing Egypt under the 
suzerainty of the Sultan has cost that country two hundred 
million dollars. 

It has always been the policy of England to sustain Turkey 
as a bulwark against Russia. However cruel the Turk, he could 
always count on England's support whenever the integrity of 



2 6o Egypt and its Betrayal 

his empire was endangered. Under the treaties, the Sultan 
could not remove the Khedive without the consent of the Powers 
that joined in the treaty compelling Mohammed Ali to accept 
for himself and his successors the sovereignty of Turkey. 

When information came from Cairo that there were no hopes 
of the Khedive's voluntary abdication, the Sultan was much 
gratified to be able, on the invitation of the Powers, to exercise 
his prerogative of sovereignty in changing the ruler of Egypt. 
This privilege had been denied to him and his predecessors since 
the time that Mohammed Ali proclaimed his independence. He 
was the more willing and even pleased to do this, as he had 
never been friendly to the Khedive. This was for the reason, 
probably, that since the accession of his Sublime Majesty to 
the throne of the Khalifs in 1876, the exchequer of Egypt had 
not been such as to enable the Khedive to send to Constantinople 
such large sums as the Sultan, Abdul Aziz, and the members of 
his court were accustomed to receive. 

In the forenoon of the twenty-sixth of June, a telegram came 
to the palace at Cairo addressed to "His Highness, Ismail 
Pasha, ex-Khedive of Egypt." In the excitement of the crisis, 
an unusual number of persons were in the rooms of the Master 
of Ceremonies, many of whom were waiting in the hope of ob- 
taining an interview with the Khedive. 

In olden times, the bearer of bad news to an Eastern potentate 
often forfeited his life. According to Herodotus, Xerxes said 
to Pythius, the Lydian, " Learn this well, that the spirit of man 
dwells in his ears which, when he hears pleasing things, fills the 
whole body with delight, but when he hears the contrary swells 
with indignation." ^ 

Prejudice against communicating unpleasant information is 
still strong in the East. The Master of Ceremonies, Zekieh 
Pasha, read the address upon the despatch and quickly dropped 

1 Her. VII, 39. 



Dethronement of Ismail Pasha 261 

it upon the table. Neither he nor his assistant, Tonino Bey, 
nor any other of the palace officials would venture to take the 
fatal message upstairs to his Highness. Fortunately, at this 
moment, Cherif Pasha entered. He was too much of a man to 
be influenced by any narrow prejudice or superstitious ideas 
and immediately took the message to the Khedive. His High- 
ness is said to have opened and read it without any visible change 
of countenance. It was as follows: ^ 

"The Grand Vizier of Turkey to Ismail Pasha, ex-Khedive of Egypt: 

"The difficulties of Egypt both internal and external have assumed great 
importance, and the prolongation of the present state of affairs would be 
dangerous both to Egypt and the Ottoman Empire. 

" It is one of the most important duties of the Imperial Government to find 
means of maintaining the tranquillity and assuring the well-being of the 
people, and the stipulations of the Imperial Firmans have been drawn with 
that object. It is evident that your remaining in the position of Khedive 
can have no other result than to increase and aggravate the present difficulties. 

"Consequently, his Imperial Majesty, the Sultan, following a decision of 
his Council of Ministers, has decided to appoint, to the position of Khedive, 
his Excellency, Mehemet Tewfik Pasha, and an Imperial decree to this effect 
has been made. 

"This important decision is communicated to his Excellency by another 
despatch, and I ask you to withdraw from the affairs of the Government in 
conformity to the order of his Imperial Majesty, the Sultan. 

"The 6 Redjeb, 1296 (26 June, 1879)." 

His Highness had till this moment relied upon the support 
of the Sultan and, when he had finished reading the despatch, 
he is said to have exclaimed, ''That is what I receive for having 
sent during my reign £20,000,000 ($100,000,000) to Constanti- 
nople." He then quietly folded the despatch, saying, ''Send 
for Tewfik immediately." Cherif quickly descended the stairs 
to a side door and, instead of sending for Tewfik, entered his 
carriage and went for him himself. 

Tewfik was then residing at the palace Isma'iliyeh, near the 

^ Translation from the Turkish. 



262 Egypt and its Betrayal 

Nile Bridge, half a mile distant from Abdin. Here was hope, 
perhaps expectation, on the part of a young man of twenty-six 
years, who was as yet living with his family, quietly, without 
ostentation, and who bore himself with a modesty bordering on 
diffidence. 

At the time of sending the despatch from Constantinople to 
Ismail Pasha, another was sent to Tewfik informing him of his 
appointment to the position of Khedive and ordering him to 
assume the direction of the Government. There was neither 
hesitation nor delay in the delivery of this despatch. The hope 
of reward stimulated the fortunate bearer of such welcome 
tidings. 

It is said that the native telegraph operator who at night 
awaited the expected telegram announcing the death of Said 
Pasha, in 1863, and took it to Ismail his successor, was rewarded 
by immediate promotion, which was followed by others, until 
be became a Pasha. 

On Cherif's arrival at the palace of Tewfik, he found him 
ready to enter his waiting carriage and about to drive to Abdin. 
Cherif took a seat by his side and, as they drove out of the palace 
gate, Tewfik handed him the despatch, which he read as the 
carriage rolled hurriedly toward Abdin. It was as follows: ^ 

"Grand Vizier of Turkey to Mehemet Tewfik Pasha: 

"The firm desire of his Majesty, the Sultan, is to secure the means of progress 
and tranquillity in Egypt which is an integrant part of the Empire, and the 
privileges which have been granted to the Government of this province suffi- 
ciently prove this supremely good intention. But, for some time, interior and 
exterior difficulties have arisen in this province which necessitate the removal 
of your august father Ismail Pasha. 

"Your capacity and intelligence, tried and recognized by his Majesty, the 
Sultan, gives promise that you will be able to properly govern this province 
and to re-establish peace and tranquillity in conformity to the high and august 
desire of his Majesty, the Sultan. Consequently his Imperial Majesty has, by 

^ Translation. 




Tewfik Pasha. 



^ 



Dethronement of Ismail Pasha 263 

an Imperial decree, appointed you Khedive of Egypt, and the Imperial firman 
will be delivered to you with the usual ceremony. 

'' Ismail Pasha is invited by another despatch to retire from the affairs of 
the Government. Consequently, on receiving this despatch, you will assemble 
all the Ulemas, the functionaries, the notables of the country, and the employ- 
ees of the Government, communicate to them the stipulations of the Imperial 
decree concerning your appointment and commence the direction of the affairs 
of the Government. 

"This high and just appointment is a recompense for your capacities, and 
your accession will be the commencement of order and progress which will 
reign in the country, whose Government you are called to administer. 

" I wish you great success, and I felicitate you on your accession." 

"The 6Redjeb, 1296." 

In returning the despatch, Cherif said, "Your Highness will 
take measures to be proclaimed Khedive at the Citadel this 
afternoon?" Tewfik assented. 

The carriage quickly arrived at the grand entrance of Abdin. 
They mounted in a moment the palatial stairway and were met 
by Ismail at the entrance of the reception room. His Highness 
took the hand of his son, raised it to his lips, according to the 
Oriental custom of familiar homage and said, "I salute you as 
my Effendina" (Lord), as the Khedive is usually styled among 
the natives. He then kissed him on both cheeks and added, 
'*I hope you will not forget that I am your father," after which 
he retired immediately to his private apartments. 

Thus, suddenly, all the responsibilities of the Government 
of Egypt and the Sudan from the Mediterranean to the lakes of 
Albert and Victoria Nyanza fell upon this young prince, and he 
became the absolute ruler of over ten million people, to whom 
his word was law. The Mahdi was soon to relieve him of the 
responsibility of the Sudan and Central Africa, and England 
and France were to assume the principal share of the Govern- 
ment of Egypt, but his cares and burdens were to be increased 
rather than lessened therebv. 



264 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER XXII 

THE INSTALLATION OF TEWFIK PASHA AND THE DEPARTURE OF 

ISMAIL 

The members of the Ministry were soon afterwards assembled 
at the palace. Ismail Pasha appeared before them and formally 
consented to the accession of his son to the throne of Egypt. 
Official notices of the change of ruler were immediately sent to 
the diplomatic representatives, accompanied with an invitation 
to meet his Highness, Tewfik Pasha, that afternoon at his palace, 
Isma'iliyeh, and accompany him to the Citadel for the cere- 
mony of his proclamation as Khedive. 

At the appointed hour, we were at the palace and were re- 
ceived by his Highness. All were in dress imiforms, except the 
representative of the United States. He was compelled to ap- 
pear on this, as on other official occasions, in a plain dress-suit. 
The lack of knowledge on the part of the members of Congress 
of the customs of other countries and their desire to force their 
Brother Jonathan ideas upon the whole world induced them, a 
few years ago, to deny to their foreign representatives the 
privilege of wearing uniforms according to the universal diplo- 
matic custom. 

We were joined at the palace by such judges of the New 
Tribunal, or International Court, as were in Cairo. They were 
in their official dress, which consisted of the red tarboosh; the 
stamboul (a single breasted black coat with standing collar); 
a broad scarlet scarf, with gold tassels at its ends, which passed 



Installation of Tewfik Pasha 265 

over the left shoulder and was attached at the waist on the right 
side; and a large chest plaque, upon which was engraved in 
relief the rising sun and in Arabic, in black enamel, the words 
''Justice is the foundation of all good government." The new 
Khedive, his brothers (Princes Hussein and Hassan), the mem- 
bers of the Ministry and the other court officials and high officers, 
all wore brilliant uniforms. The Ulemas (Doctors of Law), 
native judges and other notables were in their flowing native 
costumes. 

The Khedive left the palace in a calash with his two brothers 
and Cherif Pasha. Then followed the carriages of the Consuls- 
General, the Judges and a long procession of Europeans and a 
few natives. The Citadel was over two miles distant, on a high 
point at the southeastern extremity of the city, which is a spur 
of the Mokattam Hills. Companies of cavalry were stationed 
on either side of the street leading from the palace, and, for 
a considerable distance before arriving at the Citadel, there 
were soldiers arranged in the same manner. 

Information of the change of Government was not given to 
the public until two o'clock that afternoon. The news spread 
rapidly, and the crowd became so great near the end of our 
route that it was with difficulty that the soldiers could keep 
the passage clear. As we slowly mounted the high hill by a 
narrow passage with massive walls on either side, one hundred 
and one guns were fired from the overlooking parapets, announc- 
ing to the people the entry upon his reign of a new Khedive, 
and the sad termination of the reign of Ismail Pasha which had 
had such a brilliant beginning a Uttle over sixteen years before. 

As we reached the summit, turning back we saw the city 
spread out before us with its numerous gardens, its flat roofs, 
its extensive cemeoeilt^s, its historic, domed tombs of Mamelukes, 
Sultans, Khalifs, Pashas and Beys, its numerous mosques with 
their domes and minarets. It was a unique and most delightful 



2 66 l^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

picture, covering a space very much more extensive than a city 
of half a million inhabitants would be expected to cover. On 
the west was the thread of the Nile and beyond the green fields, 
and, at the other side of the valley, the pyramids and the moun- 
tains of the Lybian desert. In front of us were the mosques 
and palaces of the Citadel for which the yellow deserts of the 
Mokattam Hills served as a background. 

The Citadel was built by Saladin (MeUk Yusuf Salaheddin), 
the founder of a dynasty of Kurds in Egypt, in 1166, of stone 
taken from the small pyramids of Gizeh. It is of Httle impor- 
tance at the present day, in a military point of view, except as a 
temporary defense against any sudden revolt of the people of 
the city. An old, narrow passage with high walls on either side 
leads up to it. This passage was the scene of the horrid tragedies 
on the first day of March, 1811, in which over four hundred 
Mamelukes were slaughtered by the soldiers of Mohammed Ali, 
leaving him the sole ruler of Egypt. 

The Mamelukes were originally slaves, as the name implies, 
trained as soldiers and forming the bodyguards of the Sultans. 
In 1250, they usurped the throne of Egypt, established a dynasty, 
and, with various changes, ruled the country for two hundred 
and fifty years. Those who had previously been slaves fre- 
quently became Sultans. In 1517, the Turks conquered the 
country and reduced the Mameluke Beys to the condition of 
petty princes. The Beys were made governors of the provinces, 
but Pashas to whom the Beys promised allegiance were sent to 
govern the country at large. The Pashas' authority, however, 
soon became little more than nominal, since the Beys, although 
paying them tribute, had absolute control of the provinces. 
The Beys sometimes rebelled and became almost independent 
of the Ottoman Government. 

This was the condition of the country when Mohammed Ali 
became its governor, or the ruling Pasha. The Mameluke Beys 



Installation of Tewfik Pasha 267 

formed an aristocracy that in reality controlled the Government, 
the Turkish authority being only nominal. Mohammed AH 
found that he could do nothing without their consent. Tired 
of this restraint, he conceived the idea of their utter extermina- 
tion, and, having made preliminary arrangements to this end, 
he invited all the Mamelukes in Egypt to a grand reception at 
his palace in the Citadel. 

The invitation of a ruler is always considered a command, and 
the Mamelukes, having no suspicion of his designs, willingly 
obeyed. When the reception was finished, he invited them to 
join in a procession and march through the city. To this they 
readily assented. Mounted on their richly caparisoned Arab 
steeds they would make an imposing spectacle, not only delight- 
ing the people, but inspiring in them an awe of the power of the 
combined force of the Mameluke princes. 

When they had all entered the narrow passage, with files of 
the Pasha's soldiers arranged as a guard of honor on either side, 
the Pasha caused the great gates behind them as well as those at 
the foot of the hill to be closed, thus shutting them in between 
high walls. The order was given, the troops fell upon them, and 
the whole number, variously stated at from four to nearly five 
hundred, were slain. Only one escaped, and he, because he 
arrived at the Citadel too late to enter before the lower gate was 
closed. He heard the noise within and on his fleet horse made 
his escape into Syria. By a single stroke, the most success- 
ful couj) d'etat in history, a numerous aristocracy that had 
governed the country for over five centuries were exterminated. 
Thus was founded the power of Mohammed Ali, the son of a 
Turkish tobacconist of Kavala Roumelia, who was then forty- 
three years old. He is often called the great-grandfather of 
Tewfik, whom we were about to see proclaimed as Khedive. 
In fact, neither Ismail nor his son were descendants of Mo- 
hammed Ali. Ismail's father, Ibrahim Pasha, a great general. 



2 6S '^'gyp^ ^^^^^' ^^^"^ Betray ill 

wlu> siu'ctvHltHl MoliHiunuHl All as nilor of l*'j!;y[>t, was only his 
nil(>i>(tHl soi\. Ilo was the real son i>f owe of (ho wives of 
MohatnnuHl Ali bv a previous husband and was born in 

'rurkt\Y. 

The Citadt^l is sulliciontly larj:;e to contain a small town, and 
thtM'o an* in i( st^NtM-al very old niosi|ues and a very large palace, 
useti wluMi 1 was lirst in l'4!;yi>( for ollices of the l)e[)artnient of 
War. Tho palact^ built by Mohanuned Ali was of modest size 
and usi\l [principally for ceremonial receptions, and it was to 
this that our proc(\ssion was directeil. 

Thert* was io be a nu^re formal ceremony on the arrival of 
the tirnian. This one. thtM(4\He, was short, consistinji; merely 
of tlu* rcvulini;- of the Imperial messai];e before the Ministei*s, the 
lUemas, hiiijh functionaries, notables and em[)loyees of the Gov- 
ernment, and a reception o( {\\c {>rincipal personages in the 
country, foreign and native. 

Tlu* ni[>lomatic and Consular Corps W'ere received first. The 
young Khedive, his brothers and the Ministers were seated in a 
large reception room. As we entered, his Highness arose and 
came fc>rward io meet us. 

The Poyen of the Piplomatic Corps made a short compli- 
n\entary speech in IVench. in behalf of himself and his colleagues, 
and the Khedive replied in the same language. We were seated, 
smoked the chibuk, drank cotYee. had a short conversation and 
took our leave. The Judges were ne\t presented, and then 
various civil, religious and military IxHlies otTered their homage 
to their new sovereign, many humbly prostrating themselves in 
his presence. None were seated nor served with cotYee and pipes 
except the diplomatic representatives. 

Puring this time Ismail was at his palace, Abdin. 1 went 
directly from the Citadel to visit him, being probably the only 
Consnl-General who did so. My position of friendliness during 
his llighness's troubles permitted me to do what could not con- 



Installation of I'cwfik Pasha 269 

sistently he done by other ConsuLs-Gerieral representing Great 
PowerH, except the representative of Russia. 

His Highness talked freely of the situation, and said he should 
embark on the next Sunday or Monday and go directly to Con- 
stantinople, where he expected to pass the rest of his days. 
Knowing of his education in France arjd his love of European 
civilization, I ventured the suggestion that some European 
country other than Turkey njight be more agreeaVjle. "Yes," 
he replied, "perhaps for me personally, but for my family, with 
our customs, this would be disagreeable, impossible." On tak- 
ing leave of his Highness, on previous visits, he had accompanied 
me only to the door of the reception room. On this occasion 
he accompanied me, while constantly talking, along the hall to 
the head of the stairs, and started to descend with me before I 
perceived his object. I did not permit him to go farther, and, 
as a response to my dLssent, he said as we shook hmnds and 
separated, "I am no longer Khedive." He had a delicate ap- 
preciation of the forrrjs of etiquette, and by accompanying me 
he wished to renounce all claims arising from his former sov- 
ereignty. 

Two days later, .Saturday, I again visited his Highness, and 
he informed me that the Sultan ?iad refused him permission to 
come to Constantinople. He was much disappointed, but stated 
that he should leave Cairo on Monday morning and Alexandria 
the evening of the same day. Within twenty-four hours after 
the abdication, the French CorLSul-General called on him to 
inquire when he was to leave, making as an excuse ttiat he wished 
to give orders to the French war-vessels at Alexandria to render 
him, on his departure, such honors as were due to a sovereign. 

On Saturday afternoon, fearing that there might be some 
delay, he called again with the acting English Consul-General, 
both on the young Khedive and his father and insisted on the 
atter'fi leaving immediately. The two Powers also required the 



270 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

Princes, Hussein and Hassan, to leave the country, as they both 
informed me. Thus the Khedive was required by his Christian 
guardians to exile, by nearly his first official act, not only his 
father, but two brothers about his own age against whom no 
complaints had ever been made. Four days after the abdica- 
tion, the exiles sailed from Alexandria with their families for 
an unknown destination. 

There was no exultation in Egypt over the change of Gov- 
ernment, but only marks of sympathy and respect for the fallen 
sovereign. Notwithstanding the Oriental custom of abandon- 
ing the fallen to their disgrace, his palace was thronged, from 
the day of the abdication, with visitors who came to express 
their sympathy, and immense crowds of people accompanied 
him to the station. There, the separation of the family was a 
sad scene. The young Khedive embraced his father and brothers, 
and there were tears in the eyes of all beholders. Only the father 
was able to control his feelings. It was to be his last meeting 
with the son, to secure whose accession to the throne he had 
sacrificed large sums in gifts to the Sultan and his court. 

All along the route to Alexandria, there were large numbers 
of people at the stations, all manifesting feelings of sympathy 
and respect. At Alexandria, the crowd was so great that it 
was necessary for the Khedive to go to the ship by an unex- 
pected route. The war-vessels in the harbor manned the yard- 
arms and fired the usual royal salute. Large numbers of people 
went on board the steamer to take leave and were received by 
his Highness with the utmost cordiahty and calmness. He took 
leave of one after another by the shaking of the hand, saying a 
kind word to the more intimate and friendly, and occasionally, 
according to the habit of Orientals, warmly embracing an old 
and true friend. I stood some time on the deck talking with the 
two Princes, and saw some kissing the ex-Khedive's hand and 
others his garments, while many bowed to him with the greatest 



Installation of Tewfik Pasha 271 

reverence. Thus one after another during over two hours took 
a final farewell of the late Effendina. The hour for sailing ar- 
rived and the Mahroussa, which had been his Highness's fast 
and favorite steamer in the height of his power, and was now 
consigned to take him and his family into exile, moved out of 
the harbor amid the renewed roar of cannon. 

We soon learned of the exultation in Paris over the diplomatic 
victory, and the "revanche edatante;" but in Egypt the feeling 
was only that of a conquered people parting with their sovereign 
at the dictation of hated foreigners. The French thought to 
strengthen their waning power in the Orient by this achieve- 
ment, but they were only preparing the way to lose that which 
had survived their deplorably bad policy. Through this policy, 
the bondholders had added to their wealth, but the nation was 
to suffer not only in prestige, but commercially, in a degree 
wholly disproportional to what had been gained. 

The Khedive went first to Naples. Stopping in that city a 
month later, I found his Highness and his family still on the 
steamer in the harbor, not yet knowing their final destination. 
Two years afterwards I visited him at the Favorita. This is a 
royal palace on the Bay of Naples at the foot of Vesuvius, which 
had been assigned him as a residence by the King of Italy. If 
public rumor was correct, this favor was only a partial payment 
of considerable sums of money that had been loaned by the 
Khedive personally to the King's father, Victor Emmanuel, and 
which had not been repaid. On this occasion, the Khedive was 
apparently very much affected by my visit. He embraced me in 
true Oriental style, kissing me on both cheeks, and, as he stood, 
still having his hand upon my shoulder, tears started from his 
eyes. All his warmth of welcome and the cordiality with which 
he frequently charmed the visitor when he was Khedive has 
been characterized by his detractors as theatrical, designed to 
please, mere ''stage play," without any foundation of sincerity 



272 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

or real cordiality. That he possessed in a high degree a talent 
for pleasing is certain, and that he may have used it at times 
simply for the results produced is not improbable; but from my 
personal knowledge of his character I believe that he also formed 
strong friendships, to which he was generally true, until there 
was at least an apparent reason for a change of sentiment. 

I remained at the palace one or two hours talking of Egyptian 
affairs, and on my return to Naples, the carriage of the Princes, 
Hussein and Hassan, followed close after mine to return the 
visit. 

In the fall of 1881, I breakfasted with the Khedive at Milan 
and again, in the winter of 1882-83, in Paris. On the latter 
occasion General Stone, on his return from Egypt after a service 
of about ten years, was present. The Enghsh had then taken 
possession of the country and insisted on the General's retire- 
ment, though the young Khedive preferred to have him remain. 

When I last saw Ismail, at Paris, he had changed his tarboosh 
for a tall, silk hat and had the appearance of a European. He 
resided at the Favorita until 1888, when he was permitted to 
make Constantinople his home. In so doing, he became virtually 
a prisoner of the Sultan, Abdul Hamid, his old enemy. He 
could thereafter leave that city only by his Majesty's special 
permission and was even a part of the time confined in his 
palace. A short while before his death, having long been in 
poor health and knowing he had but a short time to live, he 
made an effort to obtain permission to return to Egypt, desiring 
to spend his last days in its genial climate and die in his own 
country. This boon was refused by those who ruled its destinies. 
After his death, which occurred in March, 1895, they did per- 
mit his body to be taken to Cairo and placed in the mausoleum 
of the Khedivial family. Thus, the principal actor in the 
Egyptian drama of 1875 to 1879 disappeared. His two sons, 
Tewfik and Hassan, Cherif Pasha, Lord Vivian and others had 



Installation of Tewfik Pasha 273 

preceded him. The leading Americans who were in the service 
of the Khedive (Generals Stone and Loring, Colonels Colston, 
Field and many others) have also disappeared. The same may 
be said of the prominent Americans who visited the land of the 
Nile in that period, and who were kindly received by Ismail: 
Grant, Sherman, Washburn, Maynard and Noyes. 



2 74 Egypt and its Betrayal 



CHAPTER XXIII 



ISMAIL PASHA AND HIS REIGN 



There are different opinions as to the merits and demerits 
of the reign of Ismail Pasha, according to the sources of in- 
formation and the standard by which he is judged. Few per- 
sons were ever so excessively extolled at first and afterwards so 
shamefully traduced. Until he became financially embarrassed, 
not only the persons with whom he was immediately surrounded, 
but European journals of all classes and persons in high positions 
indulged in the most extravagant praises of the marvelous de- 
velopment of Egypt and its rapid advancement under its en- 
lightened and progressive ruler, the "Napoleon of the Orient." 

On his visit to Europe he was received as a royal guest and 
lodged in royal palaces at Florence, Vienna, Berlin, Paris and 
London. Emperors, kings, queens and princes vied with each 
other in bestowing upon him royal honors. In 1867, Queen 
Victoria conferred upon him the Grand Cross of the Bath and, 
in 1868, the Grand Cross of the Star of India, and Lord Napier 
was sent to Cairo to invest his Highness with this latter high 
decoration. When the financial conditions changed, his news- 
paper adulators, without any consideration of the causes, turned 
upon him their batteries of slander and vituperation. 

The things he had done for the advancement of education, 
for modern civilization and for the material improvement of his 
country, which had before elicited such unstinted eulogies, 
were then attributed to selfish motives. He had done them 



Ismail Pasha and His Reign 275 

either to enrich himself, or, to use the language of his detractors, 
'Ho throw dust in the eyes of Europeans." All that had previ- 
ously been worthy of the highest praise was then only evidence 
of selfishness, deceit, low cunning, or other base sentiments. 

Most of the writers of the history of the period are English. 
Many of these have written with a semblance of fairness. They 
are, however, constantly searching for an excuse for being in 
Egypt, and find no other than that of the claim of the bad 
administration of Ismail Pasha. It is not my purpose to under- 
take a defense of his Government. It would be difficult, with 
our ideas of what constitutes good government, to justify the 
acts of any Oriental prince. 

If England and France had desired to depose the Emir of 
Afghanistan, the Shah of Persia, or the Sultan, they would have 
had no difficulty in finding a pretext of bad government and 
establishing the fact to the entire satisfaction of the whole 
civilized world. What I do wish to say is, that of all these 
governments, that of the Khedive was decidedly the best. 
The people were governed arbitrarily, and what we should term 
harshly, as in all Oriental countries. There are few prisons and, 
in the larger number of cases, the koorbash and the bastinado 
took the place of confinement. 

But there were no riots, no periodic slaughtering of Christians, 
as throughout the whole of the rest of the Ottoman Empire. 
These slaughtered Christians are numbered by the thousands, 
and the massacres are nearly as numerous as the passing years. 
Still, the so-called Christian Powers are constantly combining 
to give their support to the maintenance of the integrity of the 
Sultan's dominions. 

During all the reign of Ismail Pasha, the Christian was as 
secure in his rights of property, liberty and life as the Mussul- 
man. The stranger, of any nationality or religion, could travel 
throughout all his dominions, from the sea to Central Africa, 



276 Egypt and its Betrayal 

as safely as in any country in the world. Had he remained 
Khedive, with his authority as a ruler untrammeled, the same 
conditions would have continued. There would have been no 
revolts in 1881-82, no rule of Arabi Pasha, no bombardment, 
pillage and burning of Alexandria, with all their attendant 
horrors, and no $20,000,000 indemnity to be paid by the Egyp- 
tian Government and added to the national debt. 

There would have been no Tell el-Kebir with its slaughter 
of unarmed natives, no successful Mahdi, no defeat and mas- 
sacre in Kordof an of Hicks Pasha and his ten thousand Egyptian 
soldiers, no terrible defeats and slaughters at Suakin, no disas- 
trous expedition up the Nile in a vain effort to rescue Gordon 
Pasha, no loss to Egypt of the Sudan and the other provinces 
of Central Africa, and no expedition of Egyptian and English 
soldiers, at great expense to the Egyptian treasury, to recover 
the lost territories. 

All of these events, with their attendant losses of tens of 
thousands of lives and scores of millions of dollars, were the 
direct result of the removal of a strong and competent ruler 
and the placing of the Government in the hands of irresponsible 
agents of the Paris and London bankers. And this removal was 
a sequence of Lord Beaconsfield's consent to join with France 
in an attempt to extort excessive interest on loans of which 
only fifty to sixty per cent had actually been received by the 
Egyptian Government. 

An English writer, anent this subject, says, ''This forcible 
intervention on the part of both of these Powers was brute force 
overriding public law for the meanest motive that ever in- 
fluenced Christian Governments." ''Such a departure" he adds 
"from every previous principle of English policy could not fail 
to be serious." 

Ismail Pasha was in many respects a most remarkable man. 
In energy, administrative ability and intelligence, he far sur- 



Ismail Pasha and His Reign 277 

passed all other Oriental rulers. Under his guiding hand, Egypt 
advanced more in all that pertains to modern civilization during 
the sixteen years of his reign than it had in the previous five 
himdred years. In the promotion of education, in the preserva- 
tion of the monuments of antiquity, in vast explorations — 
scientific and geographic — in the construction of railways and 
telegraphic lines, in the matter of steam navigation and in re- 
claiming land from the desert, it accomplished more than had 
been accomplished by the whole Ottoman Empire since the 
days of Osman, its founder. 

When Ismail commenced his reign, Egypt had 246 miles of rail- 
way, to which he added 960 miles, at a cost of about $60,000,000; 
it had 350 miles of telegraph, to which he added over 5,600 
miles; it had 4,052,000 acres of tillable land, to which there was 
added during his reign, mostly by him, 1,370,000 acres, an in- 
crease of 33 per cent; it had 44,000 miles of irrigating canals, to 
which he added 8,400. The cost of the great canal from Cairo 
to IsmaiHya as already stated was not less than 50,000,000 
francs. He constructed the harbors of Alexandria and Suez at 
a cost of $20,000,000. 

He built docks, bridges and immense sugar factories. He 
erected lighthouses and instituted an excellent lighthouse 
service on all the coasts of Egypt. He purchased steamers 
and established regular steamship lines on the Mediterranean 
and the Red Sea. He had constructed in France and removed 
to Alexandria a large dry dock. The annual exports were in- 
creased during his reign more than three-fold, from £4,454,000 
to £13,810,000. He added to his dominions large extents of 
territory in Central Africa and on the Red Sea, including Suakin, 
Massowah and Zeila. He caused these countries to be surveyed 
and mapped and established in them his Government, the au- 
thority of which was everywhere respected. This vast territory 
with the old Sudan now constitute what the English with great 



278 Egypt and its Betrayal 

pride term the ''New British Empire of the Sudan." It was 
all under the full, peaceable control of the Khedive at the time 
he was dethroned. 

At the commencement of his reign, Cairo was wholly an 
Oriental city. The streets were narrow, many of them only 
wide enough for a single camel or horse. They were not lighted. 
Each person who went out at night carried his lantern or was 
preceded by a torch bearer. There was no available water- 
supply except the canal running through the town, from which 
the water was carried in skins. When the canal was dry, which 
was the case for some months each year, the water was taken 
from cisterns where it had been stored at the time of the high 
Nile. Ismail established good systems of gas and water both 
in Cairo and Alexandria. To the former city, he made large 
additions of streets, boulevards and public gardens, thus creat- 
ing a beautiful European town, with modern comforts and con- 
veniences, alongside the old town. 

Egypt has the benefit to-day of these numerous internal 
improvements, as well as of the increased amount of tillable 
land, the railroads, telegraph lines, harbors, docks and light- 
houses. 

Ismail Pasha also abolished the slave trade in his dominions 
and the horrid practice of the mutilation of colored boys for 
service in the harems, making such mutilation a crime punish- 
able with death. He stopped the importation of slaves, ex- 
pended very large sums of money in an attempt to end com- 
pletely the slave trade in the Sudan and the provinces of Central 
Africa, and to prevent the transportation of slaves across the 
Red Sea, whence the slave dealers took them to Turkey and 
Persia. 

He also made a law, according to the provisions of which the 
sale of slaves, both white and black, from family to family was 
to cease in August, 1884. As there were rarely any slaves born 



Ismail Pasha and His Reign 279 

in Egypt, this would soon have ended slavery in that country. 
He permitted his sons to have only one wife each, in order to 
set an example for the discontinuance of polygamy and the 
consequent importation of white slaves. 

Previous to his reign, there was an open slave market at Cairo 
where both white and black slaves were sold; and negroes were 
being constantly captured in Central Africa and brought down 
the Nile or taken across the Red Sea and sold as slaves. 

A short time before his dethronement, I negotiated with 
Cherif Pasha, with the approbation of his Highness, a treaty 
in which were embodied, in the form of an agreement on the 
part of the Khedive, provisions for the abohtion of traffic in 
slaves. This was done in accordance with a verbal understand- 
ing on the subject with the Government at Washington. I sent 
Mr. Evarts a draft of the treaty in English and French, but, in 
consequence of the change of Khedive and the English and 
French control, it was never executed. 

This treaty contained also a provision giving to cruisers of 
the United States a right to ''visit, search and detain, in order 
to hand over to the most convenient Egyptian authority for 
trial, any Egyptian vessel found engaged in the traffic in slaves, 
or which might be fairly suspected of being intended for that 
traffic." 

It would require a volume to give a history of the improve- 
ment in educational facilities during Ismail's administration. 
At the close of the reign of his immediate predecessor, Said 
Pasha, the whole number of pubUc schools was only 185. Dur- 
ing the reign of Ismail the number was increased to 4,817. 
These schools provided for between eighty and one hundred 
thousand pupils — a percentage of the whole number of boys 
in the country eight times greater than the percentage of public 
school pupils in the Russian Empire, and three-fourths as great 
as the percentage in Italy. 



2 8o Egypt and its Betrayal 

In the last year of the reign of Said Pasha, the whole sum 
appropriated by the Government for schools was only $30,000. 
Ismail had increased this amomit in 1872 to $400,000. Under 
the bondholders' reign, this smn was reduced in 1880 to $200,000, 
precisely the amount of the salaries of twelve European comp- 
trollers imposed upon the country.^ The Arabs have a great 
desire for learning. Their aptitude in acquiring knowledge is 
universally admitted and their advancement under the reign 
of Ismail was without parallel. They are also capable of the 
highest degree of culture. In his attempts to raise the standard 
of education, the Khedive had to encounter the almost uni- 
versal illiteracy among the masses, but he had no prejudices 
to combat. 

In all other departments than that of education he had 
tremendous obstacles to overcome. We of the Occident can- 
not comprehend the full significance of his innovations. The 
ruler who attempts to graft modern civilization upon the old 
Oriental stock, with all its ignorance, its prejudices and con- 
servatism, has no aid. He must not only originate and direct 
every change, but must actually impose it by the force of his 
authority.^ 

1 " Influenced by his third wife, a woman of considerable learning, the 
Khedive Ismail caused to be constructed most extensive school buildings to 
be devoted to the higher education of Mohammedan girls ; but this promis- 
ing institution was suppressed, as a measure of economy, in 1876, through 
the English and French intervention in Egyptian financial affairs, and these 
beautiful buildings are now occupied by the administration of public works. 
A similar " economical " measure was employed in the suppression of the 
extensive schools for soldiers' children established by General Stone Pasha, 
the American chief of Ismail's military household." — Gen. George S. Bat- 
CHELLER in North American Review of Aug. 2, 1907, p. 776. 

2 An experience of my own while traveling in Syria will show the difficulties 
of improvements in these countries. 

I was returning southward from a trip to the Great Cedars, along the highest 
mountain path. Near sunset on the second day, I suddenly came to the brow 



Ismail Pasha and His Reign 281 

The Khedive was personally of amiable disposition. No 
other testimony would be given by any of his numerous palace 
employees, either foreign or native. He discontinued the severe 
punishments, which had previously prevailed in Egypt. There 

of a mountain declivity whence could be seen, a thousand feet below, a pic- 
turesque village in a plateau on the side of the mountain. 

My company consisted of an interpreter, a fifteen year old son of Dr. Bliss, 
president of the American College at Beirut, a cook and two muleteers. We 
had three riding horses and mules to cany tents, provisions and camp equi- 
page. The descent appeared difficult and, for the horses impossible, but others 
had descended by the same path and why not we. Our animals were so accus- 
tomed to mountain travel that they could even mount and descend ordinary 
stairs. The baggage having been fastened so that it could not slip forward, 
the horses and mules slowly crept down the mountain, shding, at times, for 
considerable distances. 

That night, by permission, we pitched our tents on a lawn in front of the 
dwelling of a former Emir of the Lebanon. Previous to 1860, he was a petty 
prince governing by hereditary right, subject to the Sultan. In consequence 
of the massacres of that year, the Lebanon was placed under a special govern- 
ment, the Governor being appointed by the Sultan, but subject to the ap- 
proval of the Great Powers. The Emir lost his hereditary authority, but 
retained great influence among the people. 

In the evening, I called upon the Emir. He was very old and deaf, and only 
his wife could make him understand. Our conversation was, therefore, 
through the interpreter and the wife. Rustoum Pasha was then the Governor 
of the Lebanon, and an exceptionally good ruler. We had lately had our tents 
pitched close by each other for two weeks, and he had told me of some of his 
plans for improving the country. 

Among them, was a wagon road from Beirut to Damascus by the way of 
the Dog River (Lycus of the Romans), which was a little east of the village 
of the Emir but much lower. The only wagon road in Syria at that time in a 
condition to be used was one between these two cities constructed over the 
mountains by a French company under a fifty-year concession. The tolls 
were designedly fixed at a figure sufficiently high to exclude all travel, except 
by the company's conveyances. This gave it the monopoly of the passenger 
and freight traffic, which was so large that the business required sixteen hun- 
dred horses and mules and four hundred men. 

Stages left each end of the route morning and evening and large trains of 
wagons loaded with merchandise each day. I naturally thought that a new 
road that would end this oppressive monopoly, and give an outlet to the in- 
habitants of this and manv other secluded villages, would very much please 



282 Egypt and its Betrayal 

were no confiscations, scarcely any banishments and very few 
capital punishments. I heard of only one of the last named 
during the three years that he reigned, after my arrival. There 
is the one exceptional case, it is true, that of the Minister of 
Finance, Ismail Sadik Pasha. In the absolute Oriental govern- 
ment, the sovereign must in many cases necessarily take the 
place of the judge, and there may have been injustice in some 
cases. But Ismail's record is white, in this respect, in compari- 
son with that of any other Oriental potentate. Even the Eng- 
lish in the Government of non-Christian countries cannot show 
a better record. They never hesitate to try, shoot, or hang 
people summarily, whenever they believe it necessary to assure 
or strengthen their supremacy. On their landing at Alexandria 
after the bombardment of that city, they adopted some of these 
summary methods. 

While Egypt was so rapidly advancing in all that pertains to 
modern civiUzation (even including the luxury of creating a 
large national debt, in which most European countries indulge 
to the extent of their credit), what was being done in the rest 

the Emir. During the conversation I mentioned the subject. The wife had 
not the patience to do more than announce the subject to her deaf consort. 
She commenced at once to express her own decided opinions, which were, 
undoubtedly, also those of her husband. 

"Yes," she said, "the Governor wanted their people to help build this road" 
but he would get "no aid from them." "What do we want of a road?" 
"What purpose can we put it to? How can we use it?" and other exclama- 
tions of the same character were repeated in quick succession with nervousness 
and emphasis. " No, he will get no aid from us. We want nothing to do with 
his road." 

The poor woman had probably never seen a cart, wagon or carriage, cer- 
tainly not in her own town, and such innovations were not to be tolerated. 
The next morning, we descended one thousand feet to the river by an incline 
nearly as sharp as that by which we had reached the village. We then mounted 
two thousand feet on the other side, a part of the distance by broad steps. 
We passed on the way people with pack mules loaded with wood going to 
Beirut, twenty miles distant. And yet what did they want of a road? 



Ismail Pasha and His Reign 283 

of the Ottoman Empire? Although his Sublime Majesty's Gov- 
ernment was upheld and kept from disintegration by the Eu- 
ropean Powers, was there any printers' ink used, during this 
period, in praise of the material improvements of his country, 
or of the amelioration of the condition of the inhabitants of the 
dominions over which he ruled? No; there was only a record of 
a constant cry of agonizing humanity, of massacres of Armenians, 
Bulgarians and other Christians, and of congresses to impose 
reforms and keep the Turk on his feet. The Ottoman debt did 
not fail to be increased, not only to the extent of the borrowing 
capacity of the Government, but even beyond any expectation 
of its ability to pay. And, for this, there was nothing to show 
but annals of murders. 

In all Syria, there was not a harbor, a railroad, nor even a 
wagon road except the one from Beirut to Damascus. The in- 
ternal commerce of the country was carried on by means of 
pack mules and camels over rough, rugged paths which had not 
been improved in the least for centuries. Steamers coming 
along the coasts were obliged to anchor out in the sea, to trans- 
fer their cargoes and passengers to the shore in small boats, if 
the weather permitted, or, if the sea was too rough for this, to 
steam on without landing either. 

In Asia Minor, there was only one railroad. That had been 
built by an English company from Smyrna a short distance into 
the interior. Turkey in Europe could not show much more 
advancement. Everywhere, there were misery, oppression and 
the cruelty of the Turk. But the Sultan was upheld as a supe- 
rior moral being and was asked, in the interests of good gov- 
ernment and of the happiness of his beloved subjects, to remove 
the Khedive, who was in the way of the giving of a free hand 
to those who were pocketing the resources of Egypt. He could 
not do otherwise than obey, even if he had been so disposed. 

The results were tersely expressed in 1887 by the now vener- 



284 Egypt and its Betrayal 

able member of the English Parliament, Sir Wilfrid Lawson, in 
seconding a motion to amend the address in reply to the Queen's 
speech and demand an immediate recall of the English forces 
in Egypt. He said: 

''We have raised the fmided debt of Egypt from £90,000,000 
to £100,000,000, slaughtered many thousands of the natives, 
crippled the National Chamber, bombarded the principal city 
of the country under circumstances of the greatest horror, 
increased taxation, promoted horrible debauchery in the capital, 
sown dissensions between the Khedive and the people, and 
crushed out the first little sparks of independence that had been 
seen in Eastern nations for ages past." 

The causes of the financial embarrassments of Ismail Pasha 
are attributed, by those who attempt to justify his forced 
abdication, to his extreme prodigality, and on this theme they 
have embroidered the most extravagant romance. Any little 
summer house on the desert has been classed as one of his 
Highness's ''magnificent and costly palaces." 

There were only two residences built by Ismail that were 
worthy of the name of palaces, and the cost of these was in- 
significant in comparison with royal European residences. Like 
other buildings in Cairo, they were of common rough stone, laid 
in mortar and plastered inside and out. They had plain, flat, 
cemented roofs and their cost was in no way disproportionate 
to his Highness's private wealth before he became Viceroy. 
The receptions and dinners given by him after my arrival in 
Egypt were few in number, and in no way extravagant; and yet 
an English writer, who claimed great candor and conservatism 
in the statements of his book, called them "revels" and "Bel- 
shazzar's feasts." 

According to the newspaper accounts, the balls and other 
entertainments given by his immediate successors, under their 



Ismail Pasha and His Reign 285 

European advisers, have been greater in number and far more 
sumptuous; but there is no claim of extravagance. 

When Mr. Goschen came to Egypt, with all the prestige of 
an ex-member of the English Cabinet, to continue the work of 
"spoiling the Egyptians," which he had commenced years 
before as a member of the firm of Fruhling-Goschen, one of the 
great crimes he charged against the Khedive was that of aiding 
in the maintenance of the theater at Cairo. 

This theatre was largely patronized by European and Ameri- 
can visitors, who came in the winter to Egypt for health, or 
pleasure. The operas and principal theaters of Paris, Berlin and 
other European cities are maintained, or largely aided, by their 
re^^ctive Governments. The theater at Cairo still exists; but 
there are^now no criticisms. 

All of these pretended extravagances, which for years fur- 
nished themes for the newspaper correspondence carried on in 
the interest of the bondholders, counted but little in the sum 
of the national debt. The most serious imnecessary expenditures 
were those arising from the Khedivial hospitality in entertain- 
ing the imperial, royal and princely guests with their niunerous 
retinues, the Ambassadors, Ministers and newspaper correspond- 
ents, who visited Egypt at the time of the opening of the Suez 
Canal. 

Among these guests were Francis Joseph, Emperor of Austria, 
the Empress Eugenie, the Crown Prince of Prussia and numerous 
scions of royalty and nobility. From these, down through a 
long list to correspondents of obscure newspapers and nobodies, 
there were in all, it is claimed, over three thousand who through 
some official influence managed to be classed among the invited. 
All these visitors were sumptuously entertained in palaces and 
hotels, and many were furnished with steamers for the voyage 
up the Nile. This was a foolish expenditure, an excessive mani- 
festation of Oriental hospitality, the cost of which might properly 



2 86 Egypt and its Betrayal 

have been placed to the charge of the private estate of the 
Khedive. 

His Highness then thought that the canal, to the construction 
of which he had so largely contributed, was to be his crowning 
glory. It did not occur to him that it was to lead to his own 
and Egypt's ruin, nor that the nation which had given it no 
aid and had as far as possible obstructed the work would ulti- 
mately reap its vast commercial benefits, and, through it, 
augment its possessions and its poUtical power to an inestimable 
extent. Probably, the suavity of the ever captivating ^lonsieur 
de Lesseps, as w^ell as his ovm. Oriental largeness of hospitality, 
led him to this unjustifiable expenditure. T\Tiatever may be 
said of the great accomplishment of ^lonsieur de Lesseps, he was 
certainly the evil genius of Egypt, and the Suez Canal the pri- 
mary cause of its ruin. 

The Prince of Wales and many other royal or celebrated 
personages were also entertained by Ismail with a lavishness 
similar to that which he had practiced at the time of the open- 
ing of the canal. Outlays of this character added to the total 
of the indebtedness, but they were not the causes of the financial 
embarrassments. These causes were the same that have fre- 
quently produced great numbers of failm*es among business 
men, — the attempt to do too much at a flood-tide of prosperity 
which is soon to be followed by a low ebb. 

Ismail came to the throne in 1863 at the time of the high 
price of cotton. Egypt had been producing considerable quan- 
tities of this commodity for some years. The high prices then 
prevailing, and a behef in the continuance of the war in the 
United States, caused a great extension in this department of 
Egyptian agriculture. In 1864, the exports of Egypt amounted 
to the imprecedented sum of $72,000,000. This prosperity ex- 
cited all classes and produced the wildest ideas as to the mines 
of wealth in the soil of the Delta of the Nile. Egypt was hence- 



Ismail Pasha and His Reign 287 

forth to be the great cotton-producing country of the world. 
Even the common fellah could indulge in a second wife. The 
best business men lost their conservatism and were carried away 
in the current of financial speculation. The Khedive, who had 
previously been very successful in all his business enterprises, 
imbibed the spirit of the day and thought there was no end to 
Egypt's wealth. 

Orientals are proverbially improvident. With prosperity 
comes ostentation and love of pomipous show. The Khedive, 
unfortunately, knew Europe too well. He loved its splendor, 
and, with his grand and noble ideas of enlarging the boundaries 
of Egypt, creating an African Empire on the model of European 
civilization, with numerous railroads, telegraphic facilities, har- 
bors, docks, steamboat lines and general education, came also 
the desire for fine cities, beautiful gardens and parks and all 
the attendant luxuries of modern civilization. He was sur- 
rounded by a legion of European flatterers, who extolled him 
and exaggerated the wealth of the country, and he was soon 
launched into a multitude of costly schemes of territorial en- 
largement and internal improvement. 

In the fall of 1864, on the requisition of the Sultan, a small 
army was sent by Egypt, at its own expense, to put down a 
rebellion in the Hedjaz; and, in the spring of the following year, 
another was sent to Crete to aid the Turk in suppressing the 
Christian revolt. 

With the addition of expenses came a reduction in revenues. 
In 1866, in consequence of the dechne in cotton, the exports had 
decreased thirty- three per cent, about $23,000,000. Great 
projects were under way, contracts were made, and, because 
there was everywhere hope of better times and of an increased 
revenue from imcompleted improvements, there was no curtail- 
ment of expenses. They were rather constantly increasing, each 
new work requiring additional outlay. The harbors required 



2 88 Egypt and its Betrayal 

docks and the railroads rolling stock. There were also great 
wastages, enormous leakages. All the works were new to the 
natives, and were carried on by contracts with Europeans, 
who formed a body of cormorants ever seeking lucrative 
^'jobs." 

The Khedive had few competent and trustworthy agents. 
He was obliged to supervise every department of his Govern- 
ment, and, in order to do so, had to familiarize and occupy him- 
self with the railroads, the telegraphs, the steamer lines, the 
harbors, the docks, the lighthouse system, the municipal im- 
provements, the armies, the vast explorations and conquests 
in Central Africa, and the establishment of his authority in the 
equatorial provinces and at Suakin and Massowah. 

All these departments were under his immediate control, and 
not a contract could be made, nor a car purchased, nor a new 
switch put in, nor a rod of track laid without his direction. In 
addition to this and to the personal government of his millions 
of subjects, his vast personal estates and those of his family, 
the cleaning and constructing of irrigating canals, and the re- 
claiming of desert lands, all required his attention. 

The management of his lands with their hundreds of thou- 
sands of laborers, their great sugar factories, their railroads, 
boats, camels, cattle and utensils, would have been sufficient to 
have prostrated the most able administrator. Yet, with all his 
other cares, he did not neglect his personal estates. His knowl- 
edge of the details of every applicance and utensil, from the 
shaduf and mattock to the steam pump, the locomotive and 
steamship, was always an occasion of the greatest surprise to 
those who conversed with him for the first time, and the con- 
stant wonder of those Europeans who were the most familiar 
with him and the country. 

He made all contracts of importance, and even the smaller 
ones were under his supervision. It was far too much for one 



Ismail Pasha and His Reign 289 

brain; and it is doubtful if any one person ever undertook to 
direct so many, and such varied and extended enterprises, — 
to say nothing of the endless cares of his Government. The re- 
sults were necessarily great wastes through incapable and dis- 
honest agents. 

Notwithstanding these losses, his administration would have 
met all its liabilities except for the usurious interest paid on its 
loans. As already stated, Egypt had, as early as 1882, repaid 
the full amount of all moneys it had actually received on the 
sale of bonds with six per cent annual interest, and had left to 
its credit in over-payments eighteen million dollars. The loans 
so repaid included those made to pay the fifty million dollar 
debt legacy of Said Pasha and the many millions taken by the 
Suez Canal Company through the award of Napoleon III. The 
four hundred and fifty milUon dollar debt now placed to Egypt's 
account, and the interest paid thereon since 1882, amounting to 
as much as the nominal principal, are all usury, and without 
any equitable consideration. 

The annual interest on the sum still remaining is, in round 
numbers, eighteen million dollars. This is a naked tribute 
which must be paid annually to Europe for an indefinite period, 
probably for generations, like the tribute paid to Turkey im- 
posed by the Powers, at the instigation of England, in the time 
of Mohammed Ali. Ismail Pasha's real crime consisted in put- 
ting himself into the hands of the Shy locks of London and Paris. 
These Shylocks, who were mostly Jewish bankers, had sufficient 
power to control the Governments of England and France and 
to induce them to establish a new precedent relative to official 
aid in the collection of contractual debts, even those not rest- 
ing upon any moral obfigation. 

It was for the collection of claims of this character, which 
would enable the Rothschilds, Oppenheims, Goschen and others 
of the financial groups to reap the full harvest of their financial 



2 go ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

ventures, that the two Great Powers first gave their official aid 
and England, later, its military support. 

Very few English people have ever received correct informa- 
tion relative to the causes of the financial failure in Egypt. 
Having had no information to the contrary, they believe that 
the money was honestly loaned, that the indebtedness remain- 
ing is the balance unpaid, and that these hundreds of millions 
were squandered by Ismail Pasha in riotous living. They are 
justly proud of what Lord Cromer has done toward giving the 
people a good Government, but they know nothing of the facts 
relative to the burdens imposed, which Lord Cromer could do 
little to alleviate. He could do nothing to relieve this little 
country, one-fifth as large as the state of New York, from the 
annual payment of eighteen million dollars unjustly exacted and 
forced from this oppressed people by military power; nor from 
the payment of the three and a half millions of tribute to Turkey, 
which, I am informed, has long been hypothecated and goes 
direct to England. 

When we speak of the extent of Egypt, we do not include 
the surrounding deserts nor the Sudan and other southern 
provinces. These are not yet any more than self-supporting, 
neither are they any longer a part of Egyptian territory. Egypt 
paid the expense of the reconquest and is permitted, as com- 
pensation, the empty honor of having her flag raised, for the 
time being, beside that of the English. 

The new departure of certain aggressive European Powers 
from well-established principles, in their attempts to collect 
claims based on contracts and other claims the equity of which 
is doubtful by the use of ironclads, opens a wide door for the 
perpetration of gross wrongs against small and weak countries. 
Any encouragement of, or even acquiescence in, acts of this 
character against weak American Powers would be likely to 
lead us into serious international complications. Aiding, or in 



Ismail Pasha and His Reign 291 

any manner participating in the forced collection of claims of 
the character of the larger part of those against Egypt would 
be a crime which it is hoped there will be no occasion to charge 
to the Government of the United States. If we strictly adhere 
to the course we have thus far pursued, we shall avoid not only 
the danger but the injustice of such a policy. Secretary of 
State EUhu Root, in his late speech at Buenos Aires, Argentina, 
said: "The United States has never employed and never will 
employ her army or navy for the collection of debts contracted 
by governments or private individuals." ''Such measures," he 
added, ''lend themselves to speculation and are based on sordid 
objects." 



292 KgyP^ ^^^ i^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER XXIV 



INTERNATIONAL TRIBUNALS 



The Mixed Tribunals or International Courts of Egypt con- 
stitute a unique institution. They are composed of foreign and 
native judges. To constitute a court for the trial of a cause 
requires five judges, three foreign and two native. There are 
no juries, the court finding the facts and deciding the questions 
of law. The court in which the trial takes place is known as 
the Court of First Instance and has two branches, the civil and 
the coinniercial. The former has jurisdiction in what would 
be termed equity actions in an English or American court and 
the latter in actions at law. There are, however, important 
exceptions to this line of division. 

In the commercial court, there are two assessors, one native 
and one foreigner, chosen from the prominent business men of 
the city in which the court is held. They serve for a stated time, 
at the end of which others are selected to take their place, in a 
manner similar to that of selecting jurors in the United States. 
They sit with the judges on the trial and have a vote in the 
decision of the case. The Europeans are residents of Egypt, 
and the natives are chosen from among the prominent local 
merchants. Being acquainted with the commercial customs 
of the people, they are valuable aids to the court. Actions in 
which the sum in controversy is below a fixed amount are tried 
before a single European judge in a court known as the Court 
of Justice Sommaire. 



International Tribunals 293 

There is also a Court of Appeal, a forum of last resort, to 
which cases may be appealed from the trial courts. It has seven 
foreign judges, one from each of the seven Great Powers, and 
five natives. General George S. Batcheller has lately been 
designated by President Roosevelt to represent the United 
States in this Court. He was, under President Harrison, As- 
sistant Secretary of the Treasury at Washington and Minister 
to Portugal. Having served in the Court of First Instance at 
Cairo for over ten years, he is eminently fitted for his new 
position. 

There are in all these International Courts thirty-four foreign 
and twenty-one native judges. Of the former, there are three 
from each of the seven Great Powers, including the United 
States, and one and sometimes two from the Christian Powers 
of the second class, such as Belgium, Holland, Greece and Spain. 
The courts have jurisdiction in civil actions in all mixed cases, 
that is, actions in which there are parties of different nationali- 
ties, — as a native and an Englishman or an Englishman and a 
German. They also have jurisdiction in cases of crimes com- 
mitted in opposing the execution of their judgments. They 
were instituted under the Khedive, Ismail Pasha, to take the 
place of a large number of consular courts which had been es- 
tablished under the extraterritorial jurisdiction granted to the 
Christian Powers. 

Christian governments have never acknowledged the juris- 
diction over their citizens of the courts of non-Christian coun- 
tries. Whenever these countries have been opened to com- 
merce and the residence, temporary or permanent, of foreigners, 
treaties have been made or concessions granted allowing extra- 
territorial jurisdiction. This is the right of the Christian coun- 
try to govern, through its Consuls, its own citizens who may, 
either temporarily or as permanent residents, be in the non- 
Christian country. Japan has lately been made an exception 



2 94 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



to this rule, whether wisely or not the future action of her 
courts will determine. Already serious complaints have been 
made by European merchants. 

In the case of the Turkish Empire, the Khalifs and Sultans 
could not formerly treat with infidels. To have entered into 
agreements with them would have been to acknowledge that 
they had rights which even a Khalif was bound to respect. 
Instead of entering into agreements or making treaties, the 
Khalifs issued letters containing grants of privileges. These 
letters, known to Orientals as Imperial Diplomas and to Euro- 
peans as Capitulations, granted to the foreign sailors and mer- 
chants who came to trade in the Khalifs dominions immunity 
from arrest or molestation by the local authorities. They were 
first issued as early as the twelfth century. Christian nations 
were never over modest in making claims under a very elas- 
tic construction of these grants of privileges. As favorable 
opportunities occurred, they also obtained additional grants, 
until in the principal cities of Egypt, more especially in Alex- 
andria, it became a question whether the foreign governments 
or the local authority was the ruling power. The extraterritorial 
rights, claimed and enjoyed, resulted in the establishment of 
numerous sovereignties in Egypt. 

Christian foreigners were, as to their government and all 
judicial proceedings, considered as residing in their own coun- 
try. There were fourteen Christian Powers, at one time eighteen, 
represented by Consuls, each of whom was a de facto governor 
of the members of his colony and a judge to try and decide all 
complaints or actions brought against them, from whose de- 
cisions there was no appeal except to his own Government. 
There was, however, no means of executing judgments rendered 
against a native except through the local authorities, nor against 
a foreigner except through the courtesy of the Consul of the 
party against whom the judgment had been rendered. 



J 



International Tribunals 295 

Foreigners were not only exempt from arrest and trial by the 
local authorities, but their children, born in Egypt, took the 
nationality of their parents, and this might continue, as it 
actually did in some cases, for generations. To secure this right 
of the nationality of both the parent and child, it was only nec- 
essary that the family records should be properly entered and 
preserved at the Consulate. 

There were residing in Egypt in 1878 thirty thousand Greeks, 
ten thousand Italians and many of other nationalities. The 
bankers, a large portion of the principal merchants and other 
business men of the country were foreigners. Commercial en- 
terprises were largely in their hands. With fourteen independent 
judicial systems, often rendering opposing decisions, since each 
Consul acted under the laws of his own country, there could 
only be endless confusion resulting in most serious difficul- 
ties. 

Different plans to avoid this confusion were tried, but the 
first efficacious solution was the International Courts. It was 
only through long and difficult negotiations and, it is said, by 
a free use of money at Constantinople and with the press of 
London and Paris, that the Khedive succeeded in establishing 
them. Several of the Powers clung tenaciously to the privileges 
granted, or acquired by long usage and by forced construction 
of the Capitulations. Jurisdiction in criminal cases is still re- 
tained by the Consular Courts. 

The position of a foreign judge is no sinecure, though he has 
each year three and a half months' leave of absence, usually 
taken in the hot months from June to October. Three foreign 
judges, however, must remain during the vacation to hold a 
court in case of urgency. These take their vacation at a later 
date. From October to June, the court is always overloaded 
with work. 

The judgments are prepared by the judges and are in the 



2g6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

nature of the report of a referee, containing the findings of fact, 
the legal opinion, and the order of execution. By the French 
system, a party against whom a judgment is rendered must be 
informed by the judgment itself of the facts and reasons of its 
being rendered; otherwise, the judgment is void on its face and 
cannot be executed. 

The legal languages of the courts have been, until a very 
recent date, French, Italian and Arabic. English has now been 
added. In practice, French is the principal language, all the 
judges, except the Italian, and most of the lawyers employ 
no other in their court proceedings. The papers used in evi- 
dence are in many languages besides those mentioned, — Greek, 
German, Spanish, Turkish, and even Hebrew. This necessitates 
a large number of clerks and interpreters. 

The court is an independent body, employing and discharg- 
ing at its pleasure its clerks, sheriffs and interpreters, paying 
their salaries and those of its members. Large fees are received 
from suitors and for the services of clerks, sheriffs and inter- 
preters and also a percentage on the judgments rendered. The 
revenues from these sources and for the registration of deeds, 
bonds, mortgages and for notarial acts are more than sufficient 
to pay all the expenses of the courts. The surplus is paid to the 
Egyptian Government. During the first twenty-eight years of 
the sitting of these courts, ending October 31, 1903, the num- 
ber of cases adjudged was 229,807 and the receipts therefrom 
and from the other sources I have mentioned were 7,184,722 
Egyptian pounds, equalling $35,923,610. The expenses of the 
courts during this period were $18,843,715, leaving a surplus 
of $17,079,895 which was paid to the Egyptian Government. 
During the last decade, the business of the courts has increased 
very rapidly. The receipts for the year 1904 were $3,910,000; 
those for 1905, $5,048,000. The surplus paid to the Government 
in the latter year was $3,978,000. Thus these courts, instead of 



International Tribunals 297 

being an expense to the Government, as our courts are, are a 
fruitful source of revenue. This is a species of taxation to which 
we, happily, have not yet had recourse. 

The judges hold their positions for life, or as long as these 
courts are maintained. They can neither be removed by their 
own Governments nor by that of Egypt. They may, however, 
be removed by the Court of Appeal for misconduct or in- 
competency. 

Oral testimony is rarely permitted in the trial of a cause, and 
then only by an interlocutory judgment allowing certain pre- 
scribed questions to be asked or some isolated fact to be proved. 
If such evidence were permitted as is permitted in an American 
or English court, it would be of little advantage to litigants, as 
no employee, employer, servant, master, business associate, or 
person within the fourth degree of relationship to a party is a 
competent witness. The system is the same in principle as that 
in France and other Continental countries. It is based on the 
supposition that no one interested, however remotely, is to be 
believed. 

If contracts are not in writing, there is generally no legal 
remedy. The honor of the party must be relied upon. Even 
the payment of money upon a contract cannot be proven orally, 
but the party claimed to have received it may be ordered by the 
court to appear and answer the simple question as to whether 
it is true that payment was made as claimed. If he does not 
appear as ordered, he loses his case. If he does and denies the 
payment, that settles the question. His denial cannot be dis- 
proved by oral testimony. In criminal cases, oral testimony 
is taken as under the English or common-law system. 

The value of property or the amount of loss sustained by 
damage to it is determined by experts appointed by the court. 
AppHcation for such appraisal must be made immediately after 
the event causing the damage claimed, and the expert must 



298 Egypt and its Betrayal 

promptly make and deliver to the court his report to be used 
whenever the case is heard. 

Books of account, when kept in a prescribed manner, and 
letter-press copies are admissible as evidence in actions between 
merchants only; but the condition of the accounts and the 
balances are determined by the written reports of expert ac- 
countants, also appointed by the court. 

Documents, promissory notes, letters and other writings are 
admitted in evidence without proof of authenticity. The party 
against whom they are introduced, however, can enter a plea 
of forgery or any other, which, if proved, would invalidate the 
document. In that case, the action is suspended and a special 
issue formed and tried before a single judge under the limita- 
tions of a judgment of the court as to the oral evidence to be 
admitted. In the event of failure of a party to sustain his alle- 
gations, he is not only condemned to pay the costs of the special 
proceeding, but in case of bad faith or of an accusation of forgery 
he may be fined. 

The court is generally in session every forenoon, except on 
the Moslem Sunday (which is our Friday) and the Christian 
Simday. The trial of a cause consists of short arguments by 
the attorneys on the papers produced, including reports of ex- 
perts, if there are any, and generally does not occupy more than 
an hour, often not half that time. 

The papers with the briefs of the attorneys are taken by the 
court and the cases divided among the judges, generally only 
among the foreign judges, for examination. A decision is agreed 
upon at a council held each week, in accordance with which a 
judgment is drawn by the judge who first took the papers for 
examination and is read in open court by the presiding justice. 
The proceeding is very summary and the judgment is generally 
rendered within a very short time after the commencement of 
the action. 



International Tribunals 299 

All decisions are per curiam in accordance witli the votes of 
a majority of the judges or the judges and assessors sitting on 
the trial. No dissenting opinions are permitted, nor can the 
differences in opinion of the judges, if any, be divulged. The 
judgment stands as that of the court, and is, so far as the public 
is informed, the unanimous opinion of the judges. It is thought 
that dissenting opinions or a knowledge that there is any dis- 
agreement among the judges weakens the effect of the judgment 
and lessens the confidence in and the respect for the court. 
There are advocates of the adoption of the same system in the 
courts of our country. 

The want of more explicit and more detailed evidence is 
often very perplexing to the judge, and the uneducated native 
undoubtedly frequently suffers great wrong; but I am not pre- 
pared to say that the truth is not quite as often arrived at as 
by our system of voluminous, conflicting and often directly 
contradictory evidence. Certainly, the ascertaining of damages 
to property by experts, acting immediately, is more satisfactory 
than that of oral testimony as taken in our courts, often after 
the lapse of years. The European judges in these courts are 
strongly opposed to oral testimony, claiming that its introduction 
would only be opening the doors to perjury and gross frauds. 

The Mixed Tribunals were organized in 1875, and a code, 
which was a modification of the Code Napoleon, adopted for 
their use. The modifications were such as were thought neces- 
sary to adapt it to the customs and conditions of the country. 
Its application by the courts proved the desirability of other 
changes. In 1880, an International Commission was organized 
for the purpose of making additional modifications. Presi- 
dent Hayes appointed Hon. George S. Batcheller, then judge 
in these courts at Cairo, and the writer, to represent the United 
States on this commission. The commission met in Cairo from 
time to time during the winter of 1880-81, but did not finish 



300 Egypt and its Betrayal 

its work on account of disagreement regarding several important 
questions. 

While in the United States on a leave of absence in the sum- 
mer of 1881, 1 received a telegram from the chief clerk in the De- 
partment of State, requesting my presence in Washington. On 
arriving in that city on the morning of the first day of July, I 
was informed that the President, Mr. Garfield, wished to see me. 
By an arrangement of Mr. Blaine, then Secretary of State, an 
interview was had at the close of the Cabinet meeting held that 
day. It was the last Cabinet meeting at which this lamented 
President presided. As I entered the room by invitation of 
Mr. Blaine, the other members of the Cabinet were conversing 
and arranging their papers preparatory to leaving. After a few 
words of greeting, I was seated near the President who com- 
menced a conversation relative to the judgeship in the com-ts 
of Egypt, which had become vacated by the appointment of 
Judge Morgan to the position of Envoy Extraordinary and 
Minister Plenipotentiary in Mexico. He asked me if I would 
like the place, stating that Mr. Blaine had recommended me 
as a suitable person for the position and that he would be 
pleased to offer it to me if it would be acceptable. 

The President had planned an excursion to New England and 
was to leave Washington the following morning. As the mem- 
bers of the Cabinet were about to leave the room, he turned 
toward them and raising his voice asked, " Who is to accompany 
me to-morrow?" I believe Mr. Blaine said he intended going. 
Others said they would join him later. 

The offer of the President was accepted and a telegram sent 
that evening to Egypt by the Department of State announcing 
my designation for the position. I was in New York the next 
morning, when the report came that the President had been 
assassinated. On my arrival in Egypt in October, I was as- 
signed to the court at Alexandria. 



Riots of Alexandria 301 



CHAPTER XXV 



RIOTS OF ALEXANDRIA 



While busily engaged during the winter of 1881-82 with 
my new duties in the courts, the foreign financial pressure that 
had been continued since the dethronement of the Khedive, 
Ismail Pasha, was fast hastening the country to its final crisis. 
The discontent of the people was constantly increasing. There 
was no feeling of opposition to the Khedive, but hatred against 
the foreign financial domination. 

It cannot be admitted that the ruling spirits at London, who 
dictated the English policy relating to Egypt, did not foresee 
the result of their action. The English Ministry had been 
changed, but the foreign representatives and the bureaucratic 
departments remained in the control of that Jingo element of 
the Conservative Party which believes in advancing English 
interests in every part of the world without regard to the rights 
of those not of their own nationaUty. iThey were actuated by 
the same motives that were afterwards typified by the Jameson 
raid and the policy of Cecil Rhodes in South Africa. 

After various changes in the Egyptian Ministry, effected 
sometimes by means indicating incipient rebellion, Arabi Pasha 
became its ruling power. He did not interfere with the revenues 
that had been devoted to the payment of the interest on the 
public debt. No real fault could be found with his policy, except 
that it diminished the prestige of the foreign Powers, and might 



302 Egypt and its Betrayal 

in the end, if allowed to continue, give again to Egypt self- 
control. 

He was the idol of the people. No patriot was ever more 
popular. His appearance in Alexandria was the occasion of an 
ovation seldom surpassed among these phlegmatic people. The 
streets were thronged and the demonstrations showed that the 
natives were practically unanimous in his support. This made 
him the more unacceptable to those who dictated the policy of 
the Government. Patriotic movements are always in a degree 
stimulated and aided by private ambitions, but from what 
afterwards transpired, it was evident that no patriot was ever 
less actuated by motives of personal ambition than Arabi. In 
fact, after the most searching inquiry, no evidence could be 
found which indicated anything other than a passionate desire 
to be freed from an oppressive foreign domination. 

That the Khedive was in sympathy with the movement to 
free the country from the bondholders' rule, there is no doubt. 
He would gladly have aided it, could he have been assured suc- 
cess. To have aided it and failed would have lost him even his 
shadow of authority. For him, there was no other safe course 
than that of obeying the rulers that '^had been set over him." 

Opposition to the European Powers at that late day was 
ill-advised. The people were already ''bound hand and foot." 
There was no army worth mentioning, and no means of creating 
one. Egypt had not had control of its own finances for five 
years and much more than its net revenues had been taken to 
Paris and London in the interests of their great banking institu- 
tions. There was little left for the people. Even their previous 
accumulations and those of their ancestors were exhausted. 
Only the land remained and much of that was mortgaged to, 
or already in the hands of, those who had loaned them money 
to pay their taxes. Whatever the results might be, the foreign 
Govermnents had no intention ,of relinquishing the foothold 



Riots of Alexandria 303 

they had obtained, without bloodshed, but through a long series 
of negotiations and through diplomatic pressure at Cairo and 
Constantinople so strenuous that it could not be resisted. 

England and France sent their fleets of war vessels to Alex- 
andria and anchored them in its harbor. Other nations, with 
the object of watching their movements, followed their example. 
Among the war vessels arriving were several of the Greek navy. 
Between the lower classes of Greeks in Alexandria and the 
Arabs there was little friendship. The presence of the vessels 
stimulated the pride and increased the arrogance of the former 
and correspondingly aroused the hatred of the latter. The 
tension of public feeling was strong and all classes were in a 
state of excitement that would not have existed, except for the 
many war vessels in the harbor. Perfect quiet would have 
reigned had they not arrived. 

Some weeks after the arrival of the French and English fleets, 
an incident occurred, due to the state of excitement that had 
been created, which led to a serious riot. By a gross misrepre- 
sentation of the facts, this gave some color of justification to 
the subsequent action of England. 

The eastern part of Alexandria is occupied largely by Euro- 
peans and the better class of natives; the western, by natives 
and the lowest class of foreigners. Among the latter were at 
that time many Greeks noted then as now for their quarrel- 
some and, in other respects, bad character. A riot occurred 
on a Sunday in this part of the city. The exact details, as in 
the case of most riots, will never be fufly known. We do know 
that the rioting was instigated by an English subject, a Maltese 
Greek. A large part of the laboring class of both the native 
and foreign population, being that day unemployed, were either 
in the native cafes, or taking their siestas. An Arab had a 
dispute with the Greek concerning a small claim for money. 
The Greek, who was said to have been intoxicated, became en- 



304 -^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

raged, drew a knife and fatally stabbed the Arab in the abdomen. 
The sight of the helpless and bleeding victim, as he was carried 
away, and the account of the affair which spread quickly, 
excited the natives who soon commenced gathering in large 
numbers. 

The Arabs of Egypt have been for many generations sub- 
jects of an arbitrary and generally an oppressive government. 
If they were originally of a different disposition, they have be- 
come the most peaceable, submissive and easily governed people 
in the world. As the news spread, the crowd increased and 
J became turbulent, but it was not until the Greeks and Maltese 
Ij had commenced firing from their windows and flat housetops 
fj upon the unarmed natives, and some of their number had been 
i killed and others wounded, that they were aroused to violent 
acts of vengeance. 

The natives, excepting the Beduins, were not allowed the 
luxury of firearms. They could only provide themselves with 
clubs. These, for the most part, were large canes, such as the 
fellahin generally carry when walking in the fields. They are 
rough, round saplings, one and a half to two inches in diameter 
and about five feet long. They are heavy and resemble clubs 
rather than canes. There are no timber lands in Egypt and 
these are brought across the Mediterranean and sold in the 
Arab quarters. The Greeks had been imprudently provided 
with firearms by the permission of their Consul, under the claim 
that it was necessary for their protection. As a result of the 
firing, the Arabs became thoroughly aroused and maddened 
and came swarming into this part of the city, clubbing to death 
every European they found in the streets. 

The Hotel de I'Europe, where I was then taking my meals, 
was at the lower end of the Place Mohammed-Ali, and near the 
Arab quarter. My rooms were three-fourths of a mile distant. 
I left the hotel about two o'clock. Little more than an hour 



Riots of Alexandria 305 

afterwards, it became necessary to barricade the porte-cochere 
of the hotel to protect the inmates from the mob. Thieves took 
advantage of the situation and many stores were pillaged in the 
native quarter. Some American naval officers who were on the 
shore in civilian dress had a narrow escape. The police were 
wholly unable to cope with so formidable a riot. 

During the hot summer, it is customary in Egypt to take a 
short nap after the noon-day meal. The stores, banks and other 
business places are closed from twelve till three o'clock. No 
one is to be disturbed in his repose during this time. The prin- 
cipal persons charged with the government of Alexandria were, 
at the time of the commencement of the difficulties, indulging 
in their usual siestas. It was nearly an hour after the stabbing 
of the Arab before the Governor was aroused and fully informed 
. of the seriousness of the situation. There was at the time no 
Minister of the Interior and the Governor received his instruc- 
tions direct from the Cabinet of the Khedive. Much time was 
spent by him in communicating with Cairo and with the com- 
manders of the English and French fleets. Finally, he sum- 
moned the soldiers. They came promptly and on their arrival 
order was quickly restored. 

It was between four and five o'clock when I was first in- 
formed that there was ''fighting in the streets down town." 
Though advised that it was dangerous, I immediately started 
for the Place Mohammed- Ali. I met only a few persons in the 
streets, and these were running from the disturbed quarters. 
As I entered the upper end of the square, the soldiers, having 
come from the forts on what was formerly the Island of Pharos, 
entered at the other end. Standing upon the high steps of the 
Palace of Justice, I saw only a few persons and these were flee- 
ing as fast as possible. As soon as it was known that the soldiers 
were approaching, the mob disappeared with magical celerity. 
/^ About sixty foreigners lost their lives in this riot. These 



3o6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

were of the lower classes and most of them resided in the Arab 
quarters. It was claimed during the following two days, with- 
out contradiction, that several times that number of Arabs were 
killed. One Greek, the next morning, boasted of having shot 
five. 

This is as correct a statement as can be given of what has 
been characterized by historians as the Alexandrian massacre 
of the Christians by the Moslems. For three days no one termed 
it anything other than a lamentable and serious riot, com- 
menced by a foreigner. ^ 

The French Consul m the report made to his Government 
dated the following day, called it a riot (emeute). Among other 
things, he said: ^' About three o'clock a Maltese and a native 
quarreled and the latter received a stab of a knife in the stomach. 
At his cries, the Arabs gathered. The quarter is inhabited by 
Maltese and Greeks. The latter had been imprudently armed. 
Revolvers having been fired from the windows, the strife be- 
came general. Troops of Arabs came from all quarters armed 
with clubs and beat to death the Europeans." Commander 
Batcheller, of the American man-of-war. Galena, was one of 
the American officers who were on shore at the time. In his 
report, he called it a '^ serious riot, in which many Europeans 
and natives were killed." Similar accounts were published the 
next day in the London papers. In the Daily News was the 
following paragraph: ^'The Europeans fired from the windows, 
killing many Arabs, who in their turn dealt terrible havoc among 
the Europeans in the streets." Other papers contained state- 
ments to the same effect. 

When the European correspondents, who had come to Egypt 
on the arrival of the fleets, arrived from Cairo, the riot was 
quickly changed to a massacre, chargeable to Moslem fanaticism. 
They even went so far as to charge upon Arabi Pasha, without 
a shadow-reason, the inciting and organization of the mob. 



Riots of Alexandria 307 

The European dead and wounded were taken to the European 
hospitals. The natives immediately buried their dead and the 
exact number was never given. 

"'Accounts, a large part of which were due to the creative 
imagination of the different correspondents, were published and 
republished in England, on the Continent, and in the Egyptian 
journals owned by Europeans until not only the people of Eng- 
land and the Continent, but the mass of the European residents 
of Egypt beUeved them to be true. The more intelligent Euro- 
peans, who knew the facts, thought their interest would be 
subserved by a foreign occupation and allowed the reports to 
go without public contradiction. Thus is history made. \ 

A w^eek after the riots, in a copy of one of the leading news- 
papers of London, the writer read an entirely incorrect statement 
of what was known to have taken place. Having become some- 
what acquainted with the correspondent of that paper, he took 
the liberty of criticising his statements. He asked him why he 
had suppressed a part of the facts and characterized the riots 
as a premeditated massacre of Christians by Mohammedans, 
when he knew that they were commenced by an EngUsh subject 
and that many more natives were killed than foreigners. The 
correspondent was not in the least disturbed by the question 
and coolly answered that he was in Egypt for a purpose and was 
fulfilling the object of his mission. Then smiling and raising his 
hands in the attitude of one holding and reading a newspaper 
he jocosely added; ''I send a despatch to London every day. 
The next morning the subscribers all over England read it over 
their coffee with all the seriousness and confidence that they 
read their Bible." ^ 

^ A few weeks later, the English army was in possession of Alexandria. 
Arabi Pasha had erected earthworks at Kafr ed-Dawar, twelve miles inland 
from Ramleh in the direction of Cairo. The English commander, probably 
for the sake of getting information as to the character of these works, or, per- 
haps, to keep up the idea that the invasion was to be made from this point, 



3o8 Egypt and its Betrayal 

The published accounts and the information given by the 
Consuls to their citizens that war was imminent, created general 
alarm. Every train from the interior was crowded with Euro- 
peans who took the first steamer for their country, or, in their 
fright, sought refuge aboard some ship in the harbor. The courts 
continued their work as long as suitors or their attorneys ap- 
peared. Ships of war continued to arrive, until the harbor 
presented an array of war engines such as is seldom witnessed. 
Even the United States with its then very limited navy was 
represented by four vessels. 

Steamers of various nations were constantly coming and 
going, generally sailing away loaded with refugees. French, 
Italian, and Greek vessels, crowded with people of their own 

sent one of his popular regiments on a reconnoissance. It crossed the grassy 
marsh, then nearly dry, on the east of Lake Mareotis to the vicinity of the new 
earthworks. Before its arrival within gunshot, the Egyptians commenced 
firing. According to statements of persons who claimed to have witnessed 
the movement, the soldiers suddenly broke their ranks and fled, returning 
to camp without "formality in the order of their going." The correspondent 
mentioned in the text immediately telegraphed to his paper in London an 
account of this reported military exploit. 

The next day a member of the English Parliament rose and asked if it were 
true that the regiment mentioned had behaved badly. The representative 
of the War Office replied that he had received no information of that character, 
and would ascertain the facts. Inquiry was made by telegram and an answer 
received denying the truth of what had been published. The English Admiral 
immediately ordered the correspondent to leave the British lines within 
twenty-four hours. As there was no other means of departure he was obliged 
to take passage for England on a freight boat. The next week appeared in 
Punch a cartoon, of which the harbor of Alexandria and the British ships 
supplied the background, and which represented the British Admiral, a colossal 
figure, as holding this correspondent by the back of the neck preparatory to 
hurling him over the British lines. Thus one correspondent, who was "in 
Egypt for a purpose," learned the difference, in results, between misrepresent,- 
ing facts relative to those who have no one to protect them, and misrepre- 
senting facts relative to those who have protectors. If he had reported 
what he believed to be true, as is possible, his disillusion must have been 
just so much the more bitter. 



Riots of Alexandria 309 

nationalities, most of whom could not pay their transportation, 
were lying at anchor in the harbor. There were then no docks 
approached by steamers at which passengers could be landed 
and embarked. Hence, the waters were covered with small 
native boats going to and from the vessels, some of them rowed, 
but most of them provided with sails of the Oriental type. The 
boatmen who wore their native costumes, with the red tarboosh, 
fez or turban, were all active and noisy. 

Uniformed officers in their gigs, manned with sailors in cos- 
tumes representing their nationality, were going to or coming 
from the shore, or paying friendly visits to the officers of the 
other vessels. The beautiful weather, the bunting displayed by 
the numerous ships, the activity of the native boatmen, made 
joyous by their increased business and indifferent to the future, 
gave the whole scene the appearance of a gala-day without a 
suggestion of impending disaster. It was the peaceful calm 
before the awful storm of war. The city and the whole country 
were as peaceful and quiet as the harbor. 

/ There was a serious attempt made at the time to obtain evi- 
dence showing that Arabi Pasha was responsible for the riots 
and that they were the result of plans prepared by him and his 
associates. The English Government had political reasons for 
wishing to establish some criminal acts against these parties. 
It employed an attorney at Alexandria and obtained a mass of 
unreliable and contradictory statements, principally from Mal- 
tese and Greeks, without finding anything to prove that which 
was desired. The attention of the British agents was particu- 
larly directed, by a despatch from Lord Granville, to the ol> 
taining of evidence implicating Arabi and those acting under 
him. The task became hopeless and was abandoned.^ 

The Egyptian Government desired a full and coniplete ex- 
amination and formed a Commission of Inquiry. The English 
attorney whom I have mentioned was designated by the Eng- 



3IO Egypt and its Betrayal 

lish Consul as a member of this commission to represent his 
Government. As soon as this was known in London, Lord 
Granville sent instructions to have the English representatives 
''hold themselves aloof from it." The French representative 
also withdrew. Without the co-operation of these two Govern- 
ments, nothing could be accomplished. Under the extraterri- 
torial privileges enjoyed by foreigners in Egypt, they could not 
be brought before the commission to testify nor could their 
houses be searched for the property stolen during the riots with- 
out the consent and co-operation of their Consuls. This con- 
sent was refused. Thus all further inquiry was prevented by 
Lord Granville. 

L. There have never been any proofs that the riots were the 
result of any previously prepared plans. The fact, however, 
that such claims were made, the sudden discontinuance of all 
investigation when it was found that no blame could be charged 
to Arabi, and the refusal of the English Government to co- 
operate with those who wished and had a moral right to have 
the most searching inquiry made, left a suspicion in the minds 
of many Englishmen that there were facts which their Govern- 
ment desired to conceal. Lord Randolph Churchill prepared 
papers which were presented to the English Parliament asking 
further investigation. His Lordship's statements cast suspicion 
upon an entirely different class of people than those desired to 
be inculpated. 

r"In a despatch of May seventh, 1882, Sir Edward Malet, the 
English Diplomatic Representative in Cairo, wrote Lord Gran- 
ville, the British Minister of Foreign Affairs, as follows: "I 
believe that some complication of an acute character must 
supervene before any satisfactory solution of the Egyptian 
question can be attained, and that it would be wiser to hasten 
it than retard it." This means, of course, "satisfactory" from 
an English point of view. 



Riots of Alexandria 311 

At this time, the National Party was in power. The govern- 
mental proceedings were satisfactory to all, except the for- 
eigners, who wished to govern the country wholly in their own 
interest, and those who were in the employ of the foreigners or 
who dared not do otherwise than obey their orders. There was 
profound peace among the people in every part of Egypt. Yet 
the English Consul at Alexandria was secretly arming the Maltese 
Greeks and, through his advice, the Greek Consul was pursuing 
the same course with his people. Thus the worst, the most dis- 
orderly and dangerous class in Egypt were provided with the 
means that gave to the riots their sanguinary character. 

The British Admiral lent his aid and detailed an officer of 
his squadron to assist in making plans and effecting an organiza- 
tion. It does not appear that the French took any part in these 
preparations, and the Austrian and ItaUan Consuls did not 
become aware of the secret till the ninth of June, two days before 
the riots. The matter was then brought to the knowledge of 
the Consuls-General at Cairo. Sir Edward had been kept in- 
formed of the action of the English Consul, but had up to this 
time remained silent, {jf meeting of the Consuls-General was 
held on the morning of the Simday of the riots. They were of 
the opinion that the arming was a ^'most dangerous course and 
likely at any moment in itself to cause a colUsion." This de- 
cision was communicated to the EngHsh Consul at Alexandria 
and two hours after its receipt the riots were at their fullest 
intensity. 

There is another peculiar fact. It is known that during the 
riots the telegraph wires were busy with despatches between the 
Governor of Alexandria, the squadron and consular authorities 
and the Government at Cairo. None of these have been pub- 
lished. Arabi was in council with Dervish Pasha, the special 
Turkish Commissioner, and had no information of what was 
taking place at Alexandria until the riots were ended. 



312 Egypt and its Betrayal 

I was well acquainted for a number of years with Mr. Cook- 
son, the English Consul at Alexandria. He was an honorable 
man and I am certain did nothing except what he considered 
his official duty. He could not do otherwise than view every- 
thing from an English standpoint, that is, with an eye to English 
interests. Whatever his intentions or those of other English 
representatives may have been, there are certain conclusions 
that are unavoidable to anyone personally familiar with the 
facts, or who has carefully studied the official documents. 

1. The riots were a great grief to Arabi and his friends. It 
was for their interest that the most perfect order should be 
maintained. This they well knew. 

£]2. The riots were welcomed by those who desired foreign 
military occupation. They were the ''complications of an 
acute character" which in their opinion ''must intervene be- 
fore any satisfactory solution of the Egyptian question could 
be attained" and which "it was wiser to hasten than retard."" J 

3. Whatever the object of arming the Maltese and Greeks 
might have been, it is certain that if this did not actually cause 
the riots it was the cause of their extremely bloody character. 

The English and French fleets came to Egypt, as it was 
claimed, to assure the maintenance of peace. Their presence 
had created a condition wholly unexpected by France. She had 
relied on securing her ends by diplomatic pressure and a simple 
show of force. Thus far, her part had been played to satisfy the 
bondholders of Paris, to maintain her prestige and prevent 
England from obtaining a preponderance of influence in Egypt. 
She had not intended to engage in any actual hostilities nor 
could her Parliament be induced to authorize such action. Her 
irreparable mistake had been made in instigating the dethrone- 
ment of a strong, able ruler, and the putting in his place of one 
who was only to obey the orders of comptrollers sent from Paris 
and London. The sending of her fleet to Alexandria, though 



Riots of Alexandria 313 

she had no intention of having it engage in operations, was an 
unfortunate declaration on her part that coercion by force was 
necessary. Her discomfiture was England's opportunity, and 
it was hastily embraced. 

When a nation is ready for war, and has in view a rich con- 
quest, reasons for commencing hostilities are easily found. 
Under a claim, denied by Arabi and the Khedive, that Arabi 
was mounting additional guns in the forts, thus strengthening 
his position and placing in jeopardy the British fleet in the 
harbor. Admiral Seymour commenced hostile operations. 

A month had passed since the riots, and during this time the 
foreigners, wholly unmolested, had been leaving the country. 
A demand was made for the surrender of the forts which was 
not granted, and immediate preparations were made for the 
bombardment. I had been frequently invited to go aboard 
one of our vessels in the harbor, but had answered that when 
notice of the expected commencement of hostilities was given I 
would do so. Until then, I saw no reason for leaving the city. 



314 EgyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 



CHAPTER XXVI 



BOMBARDMENT OF ALEXANDRIA 



/ Sunday forenoon, July ninth, I received information from a 
private and confidential som'ce that notices of the bombard- 
ment, to take place twenty-four hours later, would be printed 
that night in different languages aboard the English Admiral's 
ship and sent out early the next morning. 

Just at dusk, I was taken to the Lancaster^ the flagship of 
the United States Rear-Admiral, Nicholson. He was much 
surprised at the information I gave him and doubted its cor- 
rectness. He said he was in daily communication with the 
British Admiral, and would certainly have been informed had 
the time been set for the bombardment. He added: ^' You have 
lived in the Orient long enough not to believe imauthorized 
rumors." I answered that I was not at liberty to give him the 
source of my information, but that he might rely on its being 
correct. The commanders of the other American vessels were 
summoned and came aboard the Admiral's ship. A consulta- 
tion was held, but the Admiral remained unconvinced. I went 
for the night on board the Galena and was afterwards trans- 
ferred to the Quinnebaug. The Galena had been ordered away 
and sailed on the morning of the bombardment. 
^"'At early dawn, orders came from Admiral Nicholson to ^'fire 
up," and a few minutes later to ^'fire up quickly!" He had 
received at midnight official information of the intended bom- 
bardment. Going on deck I was greeted with an impressive and 



Bombardment of Alexandria 315 

beautiful scene. We were lying in the capacious roadstead 
opposite the Khedivial palace, Ras-et-Tin, a mile or more from 
the ordinary landing. There was a very large number of vessels 
in the harbor. Besides the ships of war, there were steamers, 
sailing vessels from the different parts of the Mediterranean, 
ships, schooners, sloops, fishing smacks and other small craft 
in great numbers. Some were square rigged, others had long 
lateen-sails. 

Already, there was a line of sailing boats moving past us 
toward the sea, each flying its national ensign. This continued 
for several hours. The American vessels, though under steam, 
remained till the arrival in the afternoon of the train bringing 
from Cairo the American Vice-Consul General and his suite. 
We then moved out of the harbor and anchored just behind the 
English fleet as near as the Admiral thought it prudent. 

Here we awaited the events of the morrow. Behind us were 
the merchant vessels and warships of nearly all the neutral 
European Powers. The French fleet had withdrawn and sailed 
to Port Said. The light sea-breeze of the day had died away, 
and as the sun disappeared its last rays were reflected by placid 
waters. Sixty or seventy vessels were anchored a short dis- 
tance from the low, sandy beach that lies along the margin of 
the sea and separates it from the city. The city itself was then 
in full view, quiet and peaceful. 

1^ Who could tell what was to happen there, what scenes of 
horror would be witnessed, when once its people should be 
wrought to madness by the shrieking shells of a hostile fleet and 
the slaughter of the innocent inhabitants? The submarine 
cable was controlled by an English company, and the Egyptian 
shore end had been removed to a vessel lying several miles out 
at sea. During the night, the English fleet was throwing its 
calcium lights along the shore defenses. 

The sun rose the next day in a clear sky. It was one of 



3 1 6 Egypt and its Betrayal 

Egypt's beautiful summer mornings. The shore was lined with 
old fortifications, some of them dating from the time of Mo- 
hammed-Ali. None of them were at all adapted to resist mod- 
ern engines of war, nor to protect properly the men serving 
the guns. Some of them were built of stone in such a manner 
that it would be difficult to find a more dangerous place for a 
soldier within reach of the shells of a well-equipped, modern 
man-of-war. They proved veritable slaughter-houses. 

Looking southward, we had, on our left. Forts Pharos and 
Ada, the former on the site of the old Phare, once one of the 
seven wonders of the world. On our right was the entrance 
to the modern harbor, the new lighthouse and other fortifica- 
tions. Far behind them, on a sHght elevation, appeared the 
tall, granite column, known as Pompey's Pillar. Further east- 
ward, in the background, was the doomed city. 

The ancient Phare was at the east end of what was an island 
when Alexander ordered the building of the city. This was the 
place of entry to the Greek and Roman harbor. The new light- 
house is at the west and close to the entrance of the modern 
harbor. Near this were fortifications. There were still others 
along the coast west of the entrance for a distance of six 
miles. 

Directly in front of us, cleared for action, was a modern fleet, 
the most powerful ever assembled for hostile purposes up to 
that time. There were eight ironclads and five wooden vessels. 
They were placed in position at an early hour in the morning. 
The Inflexible had a sandwiched armor of wood and iron, the 
entire thickness of the plates of iron being from sixteen to 
twenty-six inches, and the sandwiched wood from seventeen 
to twenty-five inches. This ship was the largest man-of-war 
that had then been built. It was armed with eighty-ton guns, 
capable of throwing shells weighing seventeen himdred pounds 
five miles. 



Bombardment of Alexandria 317 

At precisely seven o'clock in the morning, a signal gun an- 
nounced the commencement of the bombardment. The fire 
was immediately returned from the forts. It had been ex- 
pected by military experts that the guns of the Egyptians 
would be silenced within an hour. It was thought that it would 
not be possible for any troops, in such fortifications, to with- 
stand, even for a short time, such a rain of bursting shells as 
would be thrown upon them by the fleet. In a conversation 
with General Stone, a few days previous, I asked him what 
time would be required for the fleet to silence the guns of the 
forts. After a few moments' reflection, he answered: "About 
thirty minutes." All were disappointed. 

During the whole day we heard only the deafening roar of 
cannon, saw the bursting shells and the smoke of battle which 
was driven inland by the sea-breeze and enveloped the city as 
with a cloud. The thirteen vessels of war showered upon the 
brave men at their guns in the forts exploding shells to the 
number of over three thousand. The explosions could be dis- 
tinctly seen and were eagerly watched from our ships. Occa- 
sionally they burst prematurely high in the air; sometimes, just 
above the heads of the Arabs in the forts, scattering their mis- 
siles of death in every direction. Some entered deep into the 
earth or the masonry and there exploded, sending up clouds 
of dust and debris and leaving large craters. Some of these 
craters were as deep as eight feet and sixteen feet and more 
broad. Occasionally a shell passed over a fort and entered 
the city. 

The bravery of the Arabs at their guns greatly astonished 
military men. Immediately after the clearing away of the 
dust and smoke of a bursting shell that must have left all in 
its vicinity torn in pieces, a little cloud of smoke from a gun 
close by would show that the living were still at their post; j 

During the day there were three explosions in the forts, 



3 I 8 l^gypt ^^^ its Betrayal 

which we thought, at the time, were the powder magazines or 
arsenals, throwing high in the air clouds of smoke and debris. 
One of these explosions, at Fort Ada, silenced its guns and killed 
nearly everyone in the fort, showing the utter inadequacy of 
these old fortifications to withstand the force of great, modern 
guns. All the guns of the fortifications were not silenced till 
five o'clock in the afternoon, and the English did not cease 
firing until six o'clock. The ships received a large number of 
shots and were considerably, but not seriously, damaged. Their 
number of killed and wounded was small, six killed and twenty- 
seven wounded. The Admiral said in his report that it was 
^'impossible to account for the very small loss considering the 
amount of shell and shot which struck them." There were 
about fifteen hundred men in the forts, a large part of whom 
died at their posts. 

After the battle commenced, an occasional shell from the 
forts passed the English ships and fell near us. About ten 
o'clock we moved a little further out, but remained nearer to 
the scene of action than any other of the unengaged ships. 

The next morning, all was quiet and the English buried their 
dead at sea. Two or three shells were fired into the forts, but 
no reply was made. In the afternoon we saw a dense smoke 
rising from the upper part of the town. This increased, and, 
as the night came, we could see the flames gradually extending 
over the European quarter, threatening the destruction of that 
part of the city. All the next day and the following night the 
burning district grew larger and larger. This part of the town 
was owned principally by Europeans, but there were no soldiers 
to land and save the property from destruction. During the 
evening of the thirteenth a party of English were landed. They 
did not enter the interior of the town, but took positions along 
its southern side. 

Friday forenoon (the fourteenth) the American Admiral tired 



Bombardment of Alexandria 319 

of waiting and, without having received any communication 
from the English, moved into the harbor in advance of any other 
neutral ships. He soon afterwards sent one hundred and 
seventy-five marines into the town to re-establish the American 
Consulate, and do what they could to arrest the destruction 
of the fire. This was done at the request of the English Admiral 
and with the consent of the Khedive, who had then returned 
to his palace, Ras-et-Tin. In the morning, some English marines 
had taken possession of the inner forts and some of the gates 
of the walled city. Though the town had been abandoned by 
the Egyptian soldiers since Wednesday forenoon, the English 
did not enter its interior until Saturday, the day after our little 
band had established its quarters and raised the American flag 
at the upper end of the Place Mohammed-Ali. 

I also entered the town on Saturday. A large part of the 
European quarter was a mass of burning ruins. The streets 
which the fire had not reached were like those of Pompeii in 
their solitude. The shops had been pillaged and there was 
scarcely a person to be seen. For two days after the local 
authorities had been driven away by the shells of the fleet, the 
city had been wholly in the hands of thieves. The result was 
what might have been expected, but no worse than it would 
have been in London or New York. Drive the local authorities 
from either of these cities, and a swarm of pillaging thieves and 
robbers would fill the streets in an hour. 

The heart of the town could only be approached by circuitous 
routes. The walls of the buildings were generally high and 
three feet thick, made of rough stone and mortar, bound to- 
gether with wood and plastered inside and out. The mass 
of ruins was therefore so great that it covered the ground ten 
and fifteen feet deep and filled even wide streets. Miles of great 
blocks had been destroyed, and the fire was still spreading. 
Fortunately, from the amount of stone, cement and mortar 



3 20 Egypt and its Betrayal 

used in every part of the buildings, and the small amount of 
wood, they were what were termed ^'slow burners." 

The Palace of Justice, the American Consulate and a con- 
siderable number of other buildings were saved by our marines, 
who were commanded by Lieutenant-Commander, now Rear- 
Admiral, Casper F. Goodrich, from the flagship, Lancaster. 
There were a few unexploded shells lying in the streets, and 
marks of others in the remaining buildings. According to the 
official reports, about two hundred of the unarmed inhabitants 
were killed by these stray shells and the fragments of others. 
It was afterwards shown that fires were set by the evacuating 
troops. It is probable that others were caused by the shells. 
It is known that an adjoining dependence of the palace Ras-et- 
Tin was thus set on fire. 

A visit to the forts after the bombardment showed the terri- 
ble ordeal to which the Egyptian soldiers had been subjected 
in these open, unprotected fortifications. No words can paint 
the scenes. The dismounted guns and shattered walls, with 
the debris of bursted shells and broken stones scattered over 
the entire inner surface of the forts, were such as to render it 
apparently impossible for anyone to have escaped this holocaust 
of death. The appearance of Fort Ada, where the explosion of 
the magazine ^'caused the retreat of the remaining garrison," 
as the English Admiral laconically puts it, was the most ap- 
palling. Apparently, there could have been no one left living 
to have retreated. Shells and their fragments and debris of 
all kinds were thrown broadcast in such quantities, in every 
direction, as to have rendered it almost impossible for anyone 
to have escaped. 

Notwithstanding this condition, I find in the account of a 
military writer the following^ ''The English, while surprised 
by the tenacity of their opponents, were the first to confess 
that men of a stamp at all similar to their own would have 







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Bombardment of Alexandria 321 

accepted the gage thrown down the next day, and have renewed 
the fight." The men for the most part were either dead, or 
hors de combat. If there had been fifteen hundred more Egyptian 
artiller3'Tnen that could have been used, and they had been 
placed on the morrow in these open slaughter pens, to a large 
extent dismantled, they would have been sacrificed as the first 
fifteen hundred had been. And to what purpose? There is 
no doubt as to the bravery of the English troops, but when 
and where have they stood at their guns to be slaughtered as 
these men were? If there had been the least hope of final suc- 
cess, even greater sacrifice might have been justified. 

Nearly all the business part of the city had been burned,'^ 
and the part that had escaped the flames had been pillaged. 
There was much discussion at the time as to who was account- 
able for this appalling disaster. Admitting, as claimed, that 
the principal part of the damages were caused by the officers 
of the defeated Egyptians and native thieves and robbers, 
who was responsible for creating the conditions that permitted 
these acts? In other words, who was responsible for the non- 
landing of men to take possession of the city when it was 
evacuated? If it was for want of men, who was responsible 
for the commencement of hostilities without a force ready to 
land? There were English troops both at Cyprus and at Malta 
and only a very small body of men would have been required. 
Four days' delay would have been ample time in which to make 
all necessary preparations. 

Even admitting that England was justified in the military 
occupation of Egypt, admitting that she would have been for 
this purpose justified in taking forcible possession of Alexandria, 
even then, there was no justification for the bombardment at 
the time, and in the manner it was executed. I never heard 
an Englishman attempt its justification. Even those who at- 
tempted an apology admitted it was a mistake. I have heard 



322 Egypt and its Betrayal 

English officers, both of the navy and army, speak of it as a 
lamentable military error to have commenced the bombard- 
ment without an adequate landing force. Some of the army 
officers attributed it to the ambition of the Admiral and his 
desire to connect his name with an historical event, and give 
his arm of the service a part of the glory of a conquest that he 
knew was about to be made. There is only one other possible 
explanation, and that is that the English authorities hastened 
the event in order to have a fait accompli, fearing political com- 
plications. 

A few words will explain the situation. The eyes of the 
world were, from the first, designedly kept fixed upon Alexan- 
dria, as the official reports afterwards published show, although 
England had no intention of entering Egypt by that city. How 
long the plan for the invasion of Egypt had been under con- 
sideration we do not know. That it had been perfected in all 
its details eight days before the bombardment appears from 
published official papers. Egypt was to be seized by an in- 
vasion by the way of the Suez Canal. 

A force of about twenty thousand men was to enter at Port 
Said. Another division was to be brought from India and enter 
at Suez. These were to meet at Isma'iliya near the center of 
the canal. After an expected easy victory in the vicinity of 
Tell el-Kebir, on the eastern edge of the cultivated lands, a 
hasty cavalry expedition was to be made to Cairo before the 
defeated Egyptians had time to re-form. This was precisely 
what happened two months later, as soon as the troops could 
be forwarded. When there is only a shadow of armed resist- 
ance it is easy to form military plans and carry them out to 
the letter, as in a sham battle. 

At the date mentioned, plans had been made even as to the 
means of transport across the desert from the canal to Tell 
el-Kebir and, along the desert, to Cairo. Proposals were made 



jflH 



Bombardment of Alexandria 323 

for the purchase of one thousand mules in America for imme- 
diate shipment. Secret orders were given to officers and a long 
list of details arranged. Sir Archibald Alison left England for 
Cyprus to take charge of the troops to be landed there and 
organized for sailing to Port Said. 

In all these multitudinous military preparations, made previ- 
ous to the bombardment at Alexandria, no mention is made 
of any expected co-operation by the French. Their fleet re- 
mained at Alexandria with that of England, up to the time 
notice was given of the bombardment, without any apparent 
want of harmony. The military preparations were secret, and 
it was evident that England had for a considerable time known 
through secret agents, if not otherwise, that the French Parlia- 
ment would not authorize any military hostilities.^ 

She seized with avidity the opportunity offered to disem- 
barrass herself of an alliance that had long been a source of 
annoyance. The opportunity for which she had long watched 
and waited had arrived. Egypt was to be hers without any 
participation in its Government by the French. It may be that 
fear of some new turn or complications in the negotiations with 
the French hastened the commencement of an actual occupa- 
tion. In that case, the premature bombardment, causing one 
of the greatest disasters of the nineteenth century, may have 
been the result of direct orders from London. The reasons 
given to the public at the time for the bombardment were: 
that the English, by means of their calcium lights, had dis- 
covered that the Egyptians were strengthening their positions 

* It would appear from the official despatches afterwards pubhshed that 
France had no official information of the plans and intentions of the EngUsh. 
On the day of the bombardment, Lord Lyons, the English Ambassador at 
Paris, by order of Lord Granville, stated to M. de Freycinet, the French Minis- 
ter of Foreign Affairs, that " the bombardment was considered as a legitimate 
act of defense and that there was no hidden purpose {arrDre pensie) on the 
part of the British Government." 



324 Egyp^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

in the forts; that they had mounted one or more additional 
cannon; that the Admiral had informed his Government of the 
facts claiming that his fleet was endangered; and that, on these 
representations, he had obtained permission to take the forts 
if he thought it necessary. The Egyptian Ministry denied this 
statement, and even offered to permit the dismounting of two 
cannon for every one claimed to have been mounted. The 
reasons assigned were too ludicrous to merit a moment's con- 
sideration. They evidently had no influence in determining 
the plan of the Admiral. He well knew that anything that the 
Egyptians could do in strengthening their position would not 
have a feather's weight in determining the results of any attack 
on the fortifications. He also knew that there was no intention 
or disposition on their part of commencing hostilities. 



After the Bombardment 325 



CHAPTER XXVII 

AFTER THE BOMBARDMENT 

The return of the refugees who had been driven inland by 
the bombardment was a melancholy drama. It was under- 
stood, even by the well informed, that only the forts were to 
be attacked, and that the only danger in remaining in any part 
of the city not in their immediate vicinity would be from the 
aroused frenzy of the natives. 

Of the two hundred and fifty thousand inhabitants, it is 
probable that not more than sixty thousand had left when the 
explosion of the first great shell awakened those remaining from 
their phlegmatic indifference. A large majority had believed that 
nothing serious would happen. Had not the impregnable stone 
forts and the old cannon with which they were manned pro- 
tected them from hostilities since the childhood of the oldest 
inhabitant? Why should they fear now? Would not the 
soldiers in the fort sink the English fleet or drive it from their 
shores? 

It was not till the stray shells commenced falling in their 
midst that the great mass of the lower class realized their dan- 
ger. Then their flight commenced and soon became general. 
Many, even in this hour of terror, clung to and carried away 
with them their scanty possessions. Lake Mareotis bounds 
Alexandria on the south. On the west, a long, narrow beach 
separates the lake from the sea. The most practical route of 
scape for the fleeing multitude — ^men, women and children — 



326 Egypt and its Betrayal 

was eastward toward, or south of, Ramleh, a small suburb, 
built on the desert, near the sea. In this direction many thou- 
sands sought a place of safety. 

Troops began to arrive from Cyprus on Monday, six days 
after the bombardment. When outposts had been established 
and a force received sufficient to police the city, messengers in-, 
formed the refugees, who were encamped on the sands, that they 
could safely return. They eagerly sought their homes, miserable 
though they were. Entering the city by the Rosetta or Ramleh 
gate, they passed down a broad street filling it from side to side 
for hours. It was a constant stream of impoverished humanity. 
All were poorly and scantily clad and begrimed with dirt and 
dust. The natives were barefooted and barelimbed; the women 
bore their infants in their arms, while their half-naked children 
trudged at their sides; men and women, old and young carried 
such effects as they still possessed. Occasionally one of the 
more well-to-do had a donkey, a poor horse, or a buffalo cow 
on whose back the burdens were packed. There were also a 
few creaking vehicles loaded with personal effects. Such was 
the motley mass passing down the streets, still smoking with 
burning ruins, to their own quarter of the town. Fortunately, 
the fire had done little damage in that part of the city, but it 
had been pillaged of whatever was of sufficient value to tempt 
thieves. 

The Khedive remained at his palace in Ramleh, outside but 
near the southeastern part of the city, during the bombard- 
ment, and returned to Ras-et-Tin early in the morning of the 
day of the landing of the American marines. General Stone, 
keeping his solemn promise made to the ex-Khedive, Ismail 
Pasha, that he would remain with and be true to his son, did 
not leave him during these trying days. 

In an interview that I had with his Highness soon afterwards, 
he stated that he had ordered Arabi not to permit the English 



After the Bombardment 327 

to land and he seemed, by his conversation, to censure him 
because he had been unable to execute his orders. He added: 
"As the representative of the Sultan, it is my duty to defend 
the country and I cannot voluntarily surrender the least particle 
of territory." 

All the talk afterwards heard charging Arabi with the in- 
tention of injuring him was pure fiction. If anything of this 
kind could have been proved, he would have been hung instead 
of being banished. His Highness gave me a detailed account 
of what actually took place. Arabi wished the Khedive to 
retire inland and remain there and sent officers to accompany 
him. This would have increased largely the prestige of the 
National Party. The same reasons made his possession by the 
English desirable. They tried to have him go, as he stated to 
me, on board of one of their vessels before the bombardment. 
This he declined to do, preferring to remain with his people. 

Whether his Highness really expected Arabi to be successful 
in the defense of the country may never be known. That he 
wished it is certain. He could easily have managed Arabi, but 
he well knew, being advised by good counsellors, that England's 
hand once closed upon Egypt would never be opened. When 
he saw that further resistance was hopeless, he gave himself 
up as the only means of saving his viceroyalty with its semblance 
of power. From that time until his death he had no alternative 
but to execute the will of his captors. The alleged treason of 
Arabi consisted solely in disobeying the Khedive's orders when 
the latter was virtually a prisoner. 

After the arrival of the English fleet in the month of May, 
Arabi and his Ministry, on the demand of the English, resigned. 
At the request of the Austrian, German and Italian Diplomatic 
Representatives, Arabi was reappointed by the Khedive and 
retained in power till after the bombardment. The English 
then made strenuous efforts, both at Constantinople and in 



328 Egypt and its Betrayal 

Egypt, to have him officially declared a traitor. This, in their 
opinion, was necessary in order to keep up the fiction that they 
were the friends of the Khedive and had come to his support. 
There were important political reasons of an international char- 
acter why the (Government should be continued in the name 
of his Highness. If Arabi could be thus disgraced, it would 
also tend to aid in the execution of the military plans that had 
been formed. Up to this time he had acted, in opposing the 
English, in obedience to the orders of both the Sultan and the 
Khedive. The facts were so well known that the Khedive 
hesitated to comply with the anomalous demands made upon 
him. 

The mission of the fleet, as claimed, was to restore the full 
authority of the Khedive and assure the peace of the country 
which, up to the time of its arrival, had not been disturbed. 
To be more explicit, the English came ostensibly as friends of 
his Highness to aid him against the influence of Arabi and the 
National Party. The Khedive ordered Arabi to fire upon these 
friends and their ships, in case of their aggression, and not to 
allow them to land upon the soil of Egypt. Arabi tried to the 
best of his ability to execute these orders. He did as well as 
any General could have done with the means he possessed, and 
much better than any military judge thought possible. The 
forts were destroyed, the artillerymen were killed and, as an 
incident of the war, the city was burned, in the defense of the 
country against the friends of the Khedive! The ironclads and 
the eighty-ton guns were the stronger and Arabi was obliged to 
yield to the inevitable. 

Whatever the facts, the Khedive could not long resist the 
demands of those into whose hands he had fallen, and retain 
even a semblance of his sovereignty. Finally, some ingenious 
person prepared for him the following most remarkable proclama- 
tion and he had only to issue it and send it out to his people: 



After the Bombardment 329 

"Let those who read this Order know the cause of the dis- 
missal of Ahmed Pasha Arabi, and for the edification of all, 
thl? is truth. 

^' After ten hours of bombardment our fortifications were anni- 
hilated, 400 of our cannons destroyed, and the greater part of our 
artillerymen killed or disabled, while the English fleet had only 
lost five men, and its vessels had undergone no serioas damage. 

'' Ahmed Pasha Arabi then came to as at the Palace of Ramleh 
10 announce the painful news of the destruction of our forts. 

"On his side the Afimiral of the English fleet Wl demanded 
of us the ' evacuation of the forts of El-Adjemi, of Dekhile, and 
of Mex, for them to be occupied by his troops.' The Council 
of Ministers assisted by his Excellency Dervish Pashia, having 
also assembled, it was decided that the forts could not be sur- 
rendered without the express order of his Imperial Majesty the 
Sultan, and that on the contrary it was necessary to provide 
for their defense by reinforcing the garrlsoris to oppose a dis- 
embarkation of foreign troop?. At the same time a telegraphic 
despatch was addressed to the Sublime Porte. 

"But Arabi Pastia then repaired to the Ptosetta Gat€ at 
Alexandria, without taking any military measure. I had Mm 
followed by one of my Aidas-de-camp to remind him that he 
should send reinforcements to the positiorLS agreed upon. 

"Arabi Pasha aaswered that he could not send a single soldier; 
he ordered the troops to retire with him, and repair to Kafr 
ed-Dawar, thas leaving the town deprived of defenders. 

"The next day the English troops disembarked at Alexandria, 
the most important point of our country, and took pc^session 
of the town without a single shot having been fired, a fact which 
would dishonor the Egyptian Army if the ineffaceable shame 
did not wholly fall on tiirn who had the command— on Arabi 
Pasha." ' 

I Translated from the Arabic. 



3 30 l^ypt '*^^^^^ i^^ Betrayal 

This proclanuitioii, to those jicqiiaintcd with the facts, was 
a most extraordinary aiul even hulicroiis tlocumcnt. But it 
was thawii for Ihe class of people ainong whom it was to be 
circulatcul and vvjis thought by those then in control to be a 
clever means of discrediting Arabi among the mass of ignorant 
Egyptians. This class had believed in the invincibility of the 
old guns of the fortilications. They also believed in the in- 
fallible authority of the Khedive. To have him charge upon 
Arabi the res[)onsibility of the failure of sinking the Knglish 
vessels or driving them from their shores was regarded as a 
crushing blow to his prestige. It wjis also a justification of the 
Khedive and would render him a more useful instrument in 
governing the country. 

The incoming steamers gradually brought back the foreign 
residents, and the city again showed some signs of life. Many 
of the streets were wholly obstruct etl by the dSris of the burned 
buildings, and others were rendered dangerous by the falling 
walls. The Hotel de I'lOurope, to which 1 had removed before 
the bombardment, had been burned with my books and other 
effects. The building where I had previously resided in the 
u{>per part of the city luul been taken as quarters for English 
otlicers. Fortunately, I found for occu[)ation poor rooms in a 
native building near the edge of the water of the old eastern 
harbor, that of the Ptolemies and Romans. 

Many clerks and other employees of the courts remained or 
soon returned. All the judges except myself were absent dur- 
ing the summer. While charged with all the responsibilities, 
my duties were only administrative. No one attempted any 
judicial proceedings. Arabi had withdrawn to Kafr ed-Dawar, 
a point on the railroad to Cairo just beyond Lake Mareotis, 
seventeen miles distant. 

Outposts were established about the city and the war vessels 
remained in the harbor, but all olTensive military movements 



After the Bombardment 331 

were temporarily .suspended, ft was the opinion of military 
experts at that time, that a v(;ry small arrriy of well (iisciplined 
sokJiers coulcJ easily march to ('airo or any othcjr f>lace in I.ower 
I^4^yi)t. The English, however, were not ready to ex(;cijt^3 the 
plans tfiat had been matured in London by Sir Oarnrit WoLseley. 
These plans were to givci T^ngland an of)portunity of sliowing 
lOurope that in an (emergency it liad other sources than the 
British Islands from wljich to draw troops. 

It was known that thc^re would be no serioios fighting ancJ 
thought to be perfectly safe and a fine stroke of policy to exhibit 
the native Indiarj forces cornmanrJed by English officers. The 
English fiave ever since congratulated themselves on tfie clever 
manner in which they were enabled to show their vast military 
resources. On the arrival of ilntyjt trorjps and otfjers from 
Ivjgland, the Suez Canal was used as a military base. Although 
M. de Lcsseps then fiad full authority over the canal, his pro- 
tests and strenuous opposition were of no avail. It was simply 
a question of rrjilitary power, of an anny and a navy. It will 
be the sarrje with the Panama Canal in time of w^ar. Its posses- 
sion and use will depend upon our ability to hold it against all 
adversaries. 

Arabi sent one of his officers to Tell el-Keblr to erect fortifica- 
tions, that being considered the most available point of entry 
from the canal. He could easily have blocked the canal, but, 
relying upon the promises of M. rie Lesseps, he left it open for 
the entry of the hostile forces until it was too late. After the 
surrender of the Khedive, many of the native officers Uigan to 
provide for their future. The officer in charge at Tell el-Keblr 
communicated with the authorities at Alexandria through the 
fanjily of General Stone and arrangerl to desert his post instead 
of pushing the work assigned fiim. He escaped by the way of 
the Suez Canal, giving the English full knowledge of the condi- 
tion of the fortifications. 



33 2 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

There were only about eight thousand drilled native troops 
in Arabi's army. These were mostly stationed at Kafr ed- 
Dawdr and at Rosetta and Damietta, the present mouths of 
the Nile. The other Egyptian soldiers were either old men, 
or undrilled fellahin, ten thousand of whom could be put to 
flight by a thousand well drilled troops. The so-called battle 
of Tell el-Kebir gave Sir Garnet Wolseley a peerage. Yet com- 
pared with the great battles that have been fought in Europe, 
Asia and America during the last fifty years, it was, on the part 
of the English, a mere skirmish. There were great gaps in the 
fortifications through which the cavalry could ride, and, though 
there were two lines of earthworks, cannons had been mounted 
only in one. 

A march was made for a considerable distance across the 
desert in a very ^^dark night," and the attack made in a mist at 
early dawn. No outposts were found, and the march was wholly 
unobstructed. So still and successful was this movement, and 
so utterly surprised were the Egyptians, that som.e of the 
English troops commenced mounting the parapets before a gun 
was fired. Then, for a few minutes, there was a desultory fire 
by the suddenly awakened Arabs in the darkness, still so great 
that it was difficult to distinguish friend from foe. Arabi was 
awakened by the noise of the guns, but, before he was dressed, 
his soldiers were in full retreat. ^'They threw away their arms 
and begged for mercy," according to the English official report. 

In this battle, lasting but a few minutes, the English lost in 
killed, including officers that afterwards died of wounds, fifty- 
eight. The Egyptians, according to the best information at- 
tainable, lost twenty-two hundred killed and a great number 
died afterwards from wounds. The English approached and 
entered the works, according to the commander's orders, with- 
out firing a gun. Considering these circumstances and the 
short time of any resistance, it is not surprising that the English 



After the Bombardment 333 

official published reports are ominously silent as to the native 
losses. It was a slaughter, rather than a battle. 

Most of the natives then at Tell el-Kebir were unarmed 
fellahin. They were brought there in great numbers to con- 
struct earthworks in the same manner that they were accus- 
tomed to be summoned to dig and clean the irrigating canals 
under the system known as the corvee. In such cases, they slept 
at night on the ground at the place of their work, having at 
most a blanket for protection. At the time of the English 
attack, thousands of these unarmed natives were lying asleep 
on the ground where they had been at work the previous day. 
These were indiscriminately slaughtered, along with the fleeing 
soldiers, by the Indian troops. 

An English officer who was in the action of Tell el-Kebir 
stated to me, in explanation of this affair, that some of the 
Indians having been wounded, these troops became maddened, 
and that before the officers could get them under control the 
lamentable work had been done. This was undoubtedly true. 
No English officer of the present day would have willingly per- 
mitted such a slaughter. It was simply a case of "letting 
loose the dogs of war." It was an unexpected object lesson 
for Christian Europe of the result of using soldiers of this 
class. 

After Tell el-Kebir, all open opposition to the English oc- 
cupation ceased, and the seat of Government was again trans- 
ferred to Cairo. As a guard of honor, a body of Indian cavalry 
was brought to Alexandria and used in escorting the Khedive 
to the station. Well mounted and attired in their gay, native 
uniforms, they made a pleasing picture. This display was 
designed to further impress Europeans, as well as natives, with 
an idea of the Empire's great reserve force in the heart of India. 
As the Khedive rode, thus escorted, beside Sir Edward Malet, 
the English Diplomatic Agent and Consul-General, along the 



3 34 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

principal street lined with people, there was no applause, no 
manifestation of joy. 

During the summer and fall, the permanent military occupa- 
tion of the country was well established and, from that time, 
there has been abject submission. The Khedive is required, as 
a condition of retaining his position, to sign such papers as are 
prepared for him. This he is expected to do without criticism 
or comment, as a military subaltern executes the orders of his 
superiors. A mild attempt, some years ago, of the present 
young Khedive to exercise some of the prerogatives of a sov- 
ereign was summarily suppressed by the English authorities.* 

Immediately after the taking of Alexandria, there were serious 
complaints by its European residents on account of their losses, 
caused by the bombardment and subsequent burning and pillage 
of the city. 

The Khedive issued a decree making these losses a charge 
upon Egypt. What else could he do? It has become almost a 
principle of international law that the conquered shall be charged 
with the cost of the conquest. The losses incurred at Alex- 
andria were only an incident in the war. In actions between 
litigants in our courts, the party failing is generally charged 
with the cost of the proceeding on the ground that he was wrong 

* A story was lately current in Egypt of another instance of a little insub- 
ordination. It shows the precise situation. According to the account, Lord 
Cromer went to the palace, Abdin, with some document that required the offi- 
cial signature of the Khedive. The contents of the paper were not agreeable 
to his Highness and he indulged in some criticisms. Finally, he asked, " What 
if I do not affix my signature?" "Ceylon, your Highness" replied the real 
ruler of Egypt. This was the island to which Arabi and his associates were 
banished and where they were held in captivity many years. Still hesitating, 
the Khedive added " What if I still disregard what you say and refuse to sign?'* 
There was a body of English soldiers then drilling on the large square in front 
of the palace. A military force is always near by and ready at a moment's 
call. Lord Cromer invited the Khedive to accompany him to the window and 
silently pointed to the soldiers. The document was signed and the incident 
closed. 



After the Bombardment 335 

in his pretensions. Among nations, might practically makes 
right. Consequently, the weaker must pay the cost of failure. 

Negotiations between the Powers were instituted, which re- 
sulted in an agreement for an International Commission of In- 
demnities. Its members were appointed by the different Gov- 
ernments, and their labors commenced the following winter. 
There were in all eleven commissioners, two from Egypt, one 
from each of the seven Great Powers, one from Greece, on ac- 
count of the number of its claims, and one representing the other 
Powers of the second class. The writer was designated by Presi- 
dent Arthur as the commissioner from the United States. 

The claims were so numerous that their examination was 
necessarily summary. They numbered over ten thousand. 
To have examined them minutely and taken evidence, as in an 
American court of claims, would have required many years. 
The proceedings were, however, very similar to those of the 
French courts in the trial of a civil action, except that the at- 
torneys did not appear in person, but submitted their observa- 
tions in writing. No oral testimony was taken and the sessions 
of the Commission were secret. Full justice could not be ex- 
pected as a result of work of such summary character. The 
claimants, however, demanded speedy adjudications; saying 
that one-half of the amounts of their losses paid without a long 
delay and used in rebuilding or re-establishing their business 
would be preferable to the whole paid many years later. 

The parties submitted detailed, verified claims, accompanied 
by affidavits and certificates of persons claiming to have knowl- 
edge of the facts. Their attorneys added brief statements sum- 
marizing the proofs and giving their conclusions as to the 
amounts to which their clients were entitled. In the cases of 
buildings destroyed, the opinions of experts, builders, contract- 
ors and architects were added. The writings thus produced 
formed what the French call a dossier. This was submitted to 



3 3^ ^SyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

the attorneys of the Government, who examined the papers and 
added their opinions and conclusions. In this form, each claim 
was brought before the Commission, which appointed committees 
among which the work was divided. 

The dossiers were divided among the members of the com- 
mittees for examination, and, after such examination, reports 
were made to the whole committee, by which they were adopted, 
modified or rejected. On one day of each week, the whole Com- 
mission met and received the reports of the committees. These 
reports were generally adopted without dissent, but, in the more 
important cases, there was often a divergence of opinion and 
sometimes long and animated discussions. 

The Commission finished its work in eleven months, having 
examined and made final decisions on the ten thousand claims 
presented, allowing on them over twenty milUons of dollars. 
It was the intention to render as small awards as the facts would 
permit. Few claims were wholly rejected, but nearly all were 
very much reduced, and, in some cases, but a small part was 
allowed. In the uncertainty surrounding a large part of the 
claims, the Egyptian Government was given the benefit of all 
doubts, and it is probable that the total amount awarded was 
not very much more than half the aggregate of the actual losses. 



The Future of Egypt 337 



CHAPTER XXVIII 

THE FUTURE OF EGYPT 

What is to be the future of Egypt? is a question often asked. 
Politically, the countries bordering upon the Nile, from the 
Mediterranean to the great lakes of Central Africa, will remain 
practically English provinces as long as England holds India and 
her other colonial acquisitions, and is able, as at present, to 
maintain naval supremacy. 

In a conversation with Sir Edward Malet, just before leaving 
the hotel to board an American vessel, on the eve of the bom- 
bardment, he stated to me that, were it not for the Suez Canal, 
they would be out of Egypt within twenty-four hours. That 
was probably, at the time, the sentiment of the English Cabinet 
with Gladstone at its head. It would be different to-day, even 
if there were no canal. A valuable territorial acquisition once 
made is never abandoned by England. As long as she holds 
Gibraltar, she w ill hold Egypt. ' 

The control of The Suez Canal is to her of the most vital im- 
portance. In case of an international war, it would be one of 
her most effective aids. She secured its control for less than 
$20,000,000. The Panama Canal, though of less national im- 
portance to us, will cost $200,000,000. Each is of very great 
value, both commercially and for strategic purposes. Neither 
Government will yield these acquired rights so long as they hold 
their present advanced position among the great world Powers. 

Why does not England abandon all disguise and make Egypt 



33^ -'^SyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

an English province instead of governing the country by an 
illusory, advisory system? 

Primarily; because it is easier to govern the people through the 
Khedive, one of their own language and religion. They regard 
him as their legitimate and rightful sovereign and respect his 
authority, even more than we do that of the President. They 
know that a foreign Power occupies the country and that the 
Khedive must conform to its wishes. They believe that he does 
many things that are not in accordance with his desires, but 
they are ever hopeful of an end of the foreign domination. 

The English are careful to make the Khedive and his family 
adequate pecuniary allowances and to have him surrounded 
with the pomp that gives him the appearance of a real sovereign. 
By thus maintaining his Highness's prestige, the country can be 
governed principally by natives, necessitating only a small force 
of English soldiers. The real governing power, claiming to act 
only as advisory, in this way escapes the responsibility of its 
own acts and policies, which it would not always wish to assume. 
The Khedive, in theory, is the absolute ruler, making and en- 
forcing all the laws. All decrees are issued and orders given in 
his name. Under his supposed authority, the natives quietly 
submit to burdens that would otherwise be endured only by 
the application of military force. When in Upper Egypt, some 
years since, I had a conversation relative to the land-tax with a 
native living between Luxor and the First Cataract. He was the 
owner of what was considered a large tract of land in that very 
narrow and thickly settled valley. He informed me that the 
tax had been so high that it left very little or nothing for him; 
but that the Khedive had been up the river, and, after a personal 
investigation, had reduced the tax in that section, having found 
it too high. This man was only a fellah, but one of the most 
prominent where he resided. He had a son who had been well 
educated, and yet both were under the delusion that the Khedive, 



The Future of Egypt 339 

of his own will, as former Egyptian rulers had done, could change 
the amount of the land-tax. This manner of maintaining the 
Khedive's prestige with his own people is certainly very adroit 
and only persons who had had long experience in the govern- 
ment of the Indian provinces would be able to produce and 
maintain such a delusion through a series of years. 

If England should make Egypt one of her provinces, it would 
still be subject to the debts which she has sanctioned and which 
are due largely to English people. It would also be subject to 
the tribute to Turkey which virtually belongs to English bankers. 

There are also reasons of an international character for con- 
tinuing this advisory system of government. England has twice 
promised to withdraw its military forces, one promise having 
been made by the Liberals, when in power, and the other by 
the Conservatives. Though the question of the permanent oc- 
cupation may be considered as settled by the long, silent ac- 
quiescence of the Powers, they have never given their formal 
consent. France still has her claims, though recent negotiations 
indicate that they have to a large extent been abandoned, in 
exchange for a ''free hand " and English support in Morocco. 

All of the Christian Powers have extraterritorial rights which 
led to the formation of the International Courts. Some of the 
Powers would yield these only under great pressure. 

The rights of the Sultan must also be considered. His Maj- 
esty is, by the admission of all the Powers of Europe, the real 
sovereign of Egypt. His authority is at present only nominal, 
but the assumption of sovereignty by England would be an in- 
fringement upon his prerogatives likely to produce lasting 
feelings of hostility. 

In her policy of shutting Russia up among the icefields of 
the north, England will always have need of the Sultan's aid 
in keeping the Dardanelles closed. In case of the serious war 
with that Power, which, for two generations, has been the con- 



340 EgXP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

tinuous nightmare of the English statesman, his Sublime Maj- 
esty, if so disposed, might make a religious appeal. eH could 
thus easily arouse the millions of Mussulmans in India, who 
acknowledge him as their Khalif , the successor of Mohammed, the 
head of Islam. Unless some satisfactory agreement can be made 
with the Porte for the transfer of the sovereignty of Egypt, its 
present form of government will probably continue indefinitely, 
even if all other political difficulties should be removed. 

What will be the future condition of the people of Egypt? 
That of the working classes, who constitute the great mass of 
the population, will remain substantially what it now is, what 
it has been as far back as our knowledge extends. In this con- 
dition there has been little change for centuries, and there will 
be little for centuries to come. The land is being rapidly ac- 
quired by foreigners. English companies and individuals are 
already the owners of large tracts. But, whoever owns the soil, 
European, Turk or native, the condition of those who till it, 
dig and clean the canals, maintain the Nile levees, and perform 
the immense amount of labor required by the necessity of irri- 
gation, will not be materially changed. 

The rough and, sometimes, cruel modes of government of 
ancient rulers have been and are being ameliorated, as in other 
countries. But the people receive such a pittance for their 
labor that substantial improvement either in mental culture, 
or in the conditions of living is impossible. They earn from ten 
to fifteen cents a day, and are employed only a part of the year. 
This is more than they formerly received, but the cost of living 
is proportionally still higher. They provide their own food and 
that of their families. Under these conditions, there is nothing 
in reserve for them but ignorance, the mud hut or pen, and the 
scantiest possible quantity, that will maintain their physical 
being, of the coarsest food. 

The abofition of the corvSe under the late Khedive, Tewfik 



The Future of Egypt 341 

Pasha, was a step in the right direction, much to be commended. 
The system had outhved the time of its necessity. The labor of 
cleaning the canals and repairing the Nile levees is so great that 
up to a very recent period it is doubtful whether it could have 
been accomplished otherwise than by the corvee, which was a 
form of taxation upon the masses. Neglect or delay of this 
work would have been disastrous. The water controlled in the 
river and distributed by the canals is the life of Egypt. 

Under the corvee system, the people of the fellah-villages along 
the lines of the numerous canals were compelled to perform the 
work, necessary in their vicinity, without pay, as road work is 
done in some parts of the United States. The manner of living 
during the continuance of this labor was not materially different 
from that to which they were accustomed. According to our 
ideas of hving, it was a great hardship. As compared with theirs, 
the difference was not as great as that between the Hfe of our 
soldiers in time of peace and that of civilians. 

The debt of Egypt is practically what it was twenty-five years 
ago and there are political reasons why it will not be the policy 
of the English Government to have it materially lessened. The 
debt was the alleged cause of their coming and it will be a con- 
tinuous alleged reason for remaining. Some of the lands and 
other properties, gifts to the state made by the Khedive, Ismail 
Pasha, have been sold and the proceeds applied to the debt. 
Other habilities have been incurred, through the losses at Alex- 
andria, the war in the Sudan and various public improvements. 
The dam at Assuan and the barrage at Assuit have added 
S800,000 to the amount of annual taxation for thirty years. 
The high rate of interest has been very materially lessened, but 
this interest, the tribute to Turkey and the expensive Enghsh 
occupation and administration foot up so great a total that the 
working class will remain in a state of poverty. The land- 
holders, in consequence of the reduction of the interest to a more 



342 -^gyP^ ^"^ ^^^ Betrayal 

reasonable rate, are in a better condition than formerly and, by 
obtaining the labor of the people at the small sum now paid, they 
are able to realize fair revenues on the capital invested. 

The common laboring fellah will continue in the future, as 
in the past, what he is often called by the higher classes, both 
European and native, 'Hhe beast of burden." The useful don- 
key, which he overloads and goads to his work, lives in a con- 
dition but little lower. In saying this, it is not intended to cen- 
sure the present rulers, nor to charge these conditions to them. 
They certainly cannot be rightfully accused of being in Egypt 
on any benevolent, humanizing, civilizing or Christianizing 
mission. Their Government is there because it believes the com- 
mercial and political welfare of the Empire demands it; its citi- 
zens, official and unofficial, are there, for their individual in- 
terests. 

Lord Cromer's administration has been the best it could be, 
considering the conditions under which it was commenced. 
To him, too much praise cannot be accorded. But he and his 
official sucessors must continue to exact from the people the an- 
nual payment of the tribute to the bondholders and to Turkey. 
His administration has been in reality a personal government. 
Its success depended upon his good intentions and personal 
ability. Will England find a second Lord Cromer? The question 
of the sovereignty of Egypt is still open and the eyes of Europe 
are fixed upon the administration of its Government. It is cer- 
tainly in the interest of England that this administration should 
be the best that can be attained, not only for political but also 
for commercial reasons. That the latter are not neglected, was 
tersely expressed to me by an Egyptian Pasha holding an official 
position when I was last in Egypt. He said: ''The English gov- 
ern well, but they govern for themselves." It is England who 
is to reap the harvest. Unless the land is well tilled, the sheaves 
all collected and the grain carefully garnered, the large amount 



The Future of Egypt 343 

required to satisfy the claims cannot be realized. But however 
good the intentions, the attempt to make any very material 
change in the condition of the fellahin mth the debt that has 
been imposed upon them unpaid, would be hopeless. Their 
condition might be ameliorated if the country could be relieved 
of its unjust burdens, but the improvement of the mass of the 
laboring people would not be very marked. It is only by long 
and continued observation that the real situation can be under- 
stood. 

In the United States, with its sparse population, its vast 
extent of fertile lands, its rich and exhaustless mines, life is, or 
should be, easy. Certainly material and mental advancement 
are within the grasp of all, and have become the ruling passions 
of the people. Egypt, not including the Sudan and the Central 
African provinces and including only its productive lands, is 
a very small country surrounded by sea and desert. Its re- 
sources are in the soil. It contains a little less than 6,000,000 
acres of productive land. Its debt is $450,000,000 or $75 on 
each acre. If we capitaHze the tribute of $3,500,000 paid to 
Turkey at the rate of three and a half per cent, another 
$100,000,000 will be added to the interest-bearing debt, making 
in all $90 on each acre. This is virtually a mortgage of $9,000 
on each hundred acres of land, the interest on which must 
be paid semi-annually. The population of Egypt proper is 
now said to be 10,000,000. Thus, each 100 acres must sustain 
166 persons, pay the interest on $9,C00 and the expenses of the 
Government, including those of the cities, schools and the foreign 
occupation and administration. How much can remain for 
those who till the soil? 

The fine new hotels, the increase of facilities for luxurious 
living and the passing of a pleasant winter in the capital, or 
up the river, in the society of educated, agreeable people and 
polite English officers, charm the traveler. He is informed by 



344 Egypt and its Betrayal 

an abundant English literature and verbal statements that there 
is a wonderful transformation in Egypt. He repeats it to hia 
friends and makes it the basis for articles in newspapers, maga- 
zines and books. Rarely do any of these travelers enter a 
fellah-hut or make any examination as to the real condition of 
this class. 

The same effect was produced on the traveler by the won 
derful transformation due to Ismail Pasha, which caused his 
praises to be proclaimed throughout Europe. But neither the 
marvelous improvements he made, nor anything that has been 
accomplished by his successors, has materially changed the con- 
dition of the fellahin. You will find them, if you wish to make 
the examination, living in the same mud huts, in the same 
miserable condition as of yore. The conditions were even more 
favorable for the people under the reign of Ismail Pasha, up to 
the time of the financial crisis, than they have been at any time 
since. Money was then flowing into the country in abundance 
both from the sale of produce and the proceeds of loans. This 
money was expended among the people in the extensive im- 
provements that have been mentioned. Since that time, there 
has been a constant stream flowing outward, going to Europe, 
which has required all the resources of the country. 

Whether living in better or worse conditions, the Egyptians 
would be happier under native rulers of their own religion than 
under any foreign power. European Governments are more 
regular than any native Government would be. But their 
system of taxation, as applied to all non-Christian colonies, is a 
mill cleverly adjusted to the producing capacities of the country. 
Its motion never ceases. It grinds closely and takes all the 
flour. For those who, by their toil, produce the wealth of the 
country, there remains only a scanty part of the products of 
the soil. There is for them no opportunity for accumulation 
and, with a failure of crops, comes starvation. 



The Future of Egypt 345 

There is no better government for English people than that 
of England, whether in England or in colonies occupied by her 
own people. But that of her colonies, in which the people are 
non-Christian natives who can never be Anglicized, is purely 
arbitrary and military. The native, except to a very limited 
extent in certain cities, has no voice in it, nor is he allowed to 
hold any commanding position, civil or military. His treat- 
ment depends upon the character of those placed over him. If 
it happens to be a Lord Cromer, he has a good master; but it 
is always a master, and he is kept in abject submission by mili- 
tary force, whenever there is need of it, and is always governed 
as an inferior being. 

On the first establishment of the Anglo-French control, a 
number of Englishmen of long experience in India were brought 
to Egypt to occupy the principal governmental positions. 
After the military occupation was effected, a native army was 
organized with English officers, as in India, but without carry- 
ing out the complete system that has been adopted in that 
country. England has created in India what may be termed 
a mifitary aristocracy and, by it, governs the country. The 
common English soldier in India becomes a person of impor- 
tance. He has more servants than a major-general in our army. 
He has a cook, a man to wash and keep his clothes in order, men 
to black his shoes, to keep him fanned, while he sleeps, with the 
punkah, and to wait upon and serve him in every menial capac- 
ity. If he is a cavalryman, his horse is fed and groomed by a 
servant. In this manner, the idea of the superiority of the white 
man is maintained. 

The same system is adopted among the native soldiers which 
form the bulk of the army. Natives are permitted to hold 
subaltern positions, but they cannot command an Englishman. 
The EngUshman, however low his official position, outranks any 
native. Subaltern natives also have their retinues of servants, 



346 ^gyP^ ^^^ ^^^ Betrayal 

but their number is not as great as those of the English. Even 
the common native soldier has his servants, and his pay is so 
much higher than the ordinary wages of the country, that it 
gives him a position far above any class of laborers. He is a 
piivileged person. "Once in the service, he does not wish to 
abandon his position. Thus, the soldiers become an aristocratic 
caste, domineering over the mass of the people and ruling the 
country in the most arbitrary manner. They are his Majesty's 
soldiers and, anything that they or their superiors need, they 
believe they have the right to take without waiting for any 
formality in the manner of taking. 

Many years ago I was dining at his residence with a retired 
English army officer, who had been long in the military service 
in India and bore the title of '^ General." There were a number 
of invited guests, all English but myself. The conversation 
turned upon India and the Sepoy War, and the General related 
some of his experiences. He was present on one of the occasions 
when Sepoy prisoners were bound to the mouths of cannon and 
blown into fragments. He said: ^' I was then a lieutenant. The 
commanding officer stated to me in the morning that I might 
see blood during the day. I did not know what he meant. We 
were ordered out and my place was beside a cannon, and the 
blood flew over me, staining my clothing." After relating vari- 
ous details connected with this execution he remarked em- 
phatically, ''Well, we have got their claws cut and intend to 
keep them cut." On inquiry being made as to what he meant 
by this expression, he answered, ''We have got them so poor, 
and we intend to keep them so poor that they cannot rebel." 

It must not be inferred that this officer was in any sense a 
brutal man or devoid of feelings of humanity. I knew him well 
and he was a kind, humane, gentleman, and I am sure would 
not have knowingly wronged anyone. He was simply a typical 
Englishman and saw everything through English eyes, with a 



The Future of Egypt 347 

view to English interest. From his standpoint, and in accord- 
ance with his education, wherever the English flag had been 
raised, rightfully or wTongfully, there the authority of the 
Queen's Government was supreme. Anyone who opposed it 
was a traitor, an outlaw, who had forfeited his right to life. It 
was right, and a proper regard for English interests required, 
that his punishment should be made an example to deter others 
from acts of rebellion. 

The success in keeping the Indians poor is shown by the 
poverty famines that have lately become so frequent and ex- 
tensive. In the productive years, the produce is taken away 
to pay the taxes. ^^Hienever there is a short crop, there is no 
money with which to buy food. The vigorous, young and middle 
aged men wander away and generally find means of subsistence. 
The old, the weak, the decrepit and many women and children 
perish. In a cold, economical point of view there is no loss. 
It is the nonproducing class that disappears by thousands. 
The Hon. Wm. J. Bryan in an article on the ''British Rule 
in India," published in the Commoner, July 6, 1906, says: ''The 
poverty of the people of India is distressing in the extreme; 
millions live on the verge of starvation all the time, and one 
would think that their very appearance would plead success- 
fully in their behalf." Yet these starving millions pay annually, 
for the privilege of being governed by Christians, a hundred 
million dollars for the army and fifteen million dollars for the 
civil service employed in keeping them from rebelHon. England 
has taken from this country, in the last one hundred and fifty 
years, thousands of millions of pounds. She is still, according 
to the best English authorities, taking from these poor people, 
over and above all expenses, thirty million pounds sterling 
annually to be added to the enormous wealth she has already 
accumulated from this country. 

Mr. Bryan says that several times while in India he "heard 



348 Egypt and its Betrayal 

the plague referred to as a providential reniedy for over-popu- 
lation." He does not mention the famines as being thus re- 
garded. 

The English, not being in Egypt tor the benefit of the Egyp- 
tians, cannot be expected to govern otherwise than for English 
interests. The population, however, as compared with that of 
India is small and there are several English military stations 
not far distant. Considering the peaceable character of the 
people and the other conditions, it will never be necessary to 
resort to the extraordinary means of government adopted in 
India. It is probable that the best possible government will be 
given them under the conditions that have been imposed. This 
is for England's interest. Otherwise, such large sums could not 
be annually taken from the country. Certainly it will not be 
necessary to take any extraordinary methods to keep the masses 
in poverty. The fixed charges by which the country's resources 
are taken to Europe will inevitably lead to that result. Fortu- 
nately, droughts and years of failure of food supplies are rare. 
It has been over a quarter of a century since the last famine in 
Egypt. 

Whatever the conditions, Egypt will always have men of 
wealth. There will be prosperous and rich merchants and bank- 
ers in Alexandria, and a very limited number in other cities. 
Among these, there will be a few natives, but much the larger 
number will be Europeans and Syrians. There will also be a 
few rich, native landowners whose property has been kept intact 
through all the financial vicissitudes which the country has 
experienced. 

The very richness of the soil of Egypt seems to be its greatest 
misfortune. It is said that when the Persians became a power- 
ful people they proposed to their King, Cyrus, to leave their 
small rugged country, and occupy some of the fertile neighbor- 
ing regions. The King consented, but "warned them to prepare 



The Future of Egypt 349 

henceforth, not to rule, but to be ruled over," adding "that 
delicate men spring from delicate countries, that it is not given 
to the same land to produce excellent fruits and men valiant in 
war." The Persians, acting on the advice of the King, remained 
in their ancestral homes, " preferring to live in a barren country, 
and to command, rather than to cultivate fertile plains and be 
the slaves of others." ^ We have a marked exemplification of 
the wisdom of the ancient ruler in the government to-day of 
three hundred and fifty-six millions of alien races by thirty-five 
millions of people inhabiting England and Scotland. 

The people of Egypt, during a large portion of their history 
since the Persian invasion, have been slaves to foreign domina- 
tion. They are peaceful and love a quiet life. Their rich fields, 
in the future as in the past, will attract the cupidity of the 
foreigner. Besides the many political advantages accruing from 
its occupation, twenty-five million dollars can be annually 
abstracted from this country. It is now the ruling principle 
of the Great Powers of Europe by the allotment of "spheres of 
influence" or by direct partition, according to interests ac- 
quired or claimed, to divide among themselves the territory of 
such non-Christian countries as are unable to defend their rights 
successfully. Under these conditions, it cannot be expected that 
Egypt will not remain in the control of or be allotted to one of 
the greater of these Powers. Whoever shall be their masters, 
English, French or Turk, the great mass of the people, the labor- 
ing classes of Egypt will continue to be bondmen, occupying the 
richest and most productive land in the world, but living in 
poverty, destitution and squalor. 

iHer. IX, 122. 



5 



( OCT 1958 



